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COPYRIGHT DEPOSIT. 



Young People's Pilgrim's Progress 




CHRISTIAN CLOTHED IN ARMOUR 
They harnessed him from head to foot with what was of proof. 



Young People's 
Pilgrim's Progress 

WITH EXPOSITION 



By 
REV. S. J. REID, D.D. 

With Introduction by 
GEORGE W. TRUETT, D.D. 



ILLUSTRATED 




New York Chicago Toronto 

Fleming H. Revell Company 
London and Edinburgh 



Copyright, 1914, by 
FLEMING H. REVELL COMPANY 






New York: 158 Fifth Avenue 
Chicago: 125 North Wabash Ave. 
Toronto: 25 Richmond Street, W. 
London: 21 Paternoster Square 
Edinburgh: 100 Princes Street 



JUN 19 1914 
©CI.A376354 



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4- 



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To my Wife 



Introduction 

IT was my happy privilege to introduce Dr. S. 
J. Keid to the B. Y. P. U. Convention at 
Palacios, Texas, in 1911, when he came to us 
fresh from Ireland, on a preaching and lecturing 
tour through the United States. 

At our convention, his theme for ten lectures was 
the immortal allegory of John Bunyan; and so 
great was the impression created, that it was after- 
wards suggested by friends, including the editor of 
a great religious paper, that a Young People's 
" Pilgrim's Progress " might prove of inestimable 
service in advancing the standard of Christian 
living among the young members of our churches. 

Dr. Keid's book is the outcome of that suggestion. 
It does not contain the lectures given at Palacios, but 
is an attempt to introduce Bunyan's work in a form 
and style likely to commend itself to the young 
people of the present generation. 

The allegory is broken up into chapters suitably 
headed, and each chapter contains at the end an 
exposition on the subject matter. The plan is to 
provide a spiritual interpretation, suggestive rather 
than exhaustive, as an incentive to encourage the 
worthy study of this book, among young Chris- 
tians of the present day. The design of this book 
appeals to me, because the members of our junior 
Sunday-school classes can read and understand 

7 



8 Introduction 

both book and exposition with ease, while there is 
abundant food for thought and study to engage 
profitably the energies of the senior classes of our 
Sunday-schools, and the study circles of our various 
young people's organizations. 

A few of the longer doctrinal discourses have 
been omitted, as beyond the scope and purpose of 
the author. Otherwise, all Bunyan is there ; and if 
some slight changes in the terminology and language 
are apparent, they have been introduced to suit 
readers of a tender age. 

The " Pilgrim's Progress " is an inexhaustible 
mine of Christian stimulus and example. It is one 
of the age-long books. From it each new gener- 
ation finds strength and consolation for all its varied 
needs, because of the essential humanity of the work, 
and its unchanging witness to the experiences of the 
Christian life under all circumstances. No book on 
the Christian life can be compared to this classic ; it 
has never been superseded. 

If by this effort Dr. Reid can stimulate a new 
interest in our young people to acquaint themselves 
with the lessons and duties of the Christian life, 
he will have rendered a valuable service to the 
churches and the lambs of the Master's fold. May 
God grant it, for His Name's Sake ! 

Geo. W. Teuett. 

Pastor 1 s Study, First Baptist Church, 
Dallas, Texas. 



Contents 



Short Sketch of the Life of John Bunyan i 3 

I. Christian Begins His Journey, — Obsti- 

nate, Pliable and the Slough of Despond 25 

II. Christian Trapped by Mr. Worldly Wise 

man ...... 

III. The Wicket Gate and the Interpreter* 

House ..... 

IV. The House of the Interpreter — More 

Pictures ..... 

V. The Cross and the Hill Difficulty 

VI. The Palace Beautiful 

VII. The Fight With Apollyon 

VIII. The Valley of the Shadow of Death 

IX. Christian, Faithful and Talkative 

X. Vanity Fair ..... 

XI. Faithful's Trial and Death . 

XII. The Fate of By-Ends and His Friends 

XIII. By-Path Meadow .... 

XIV. Giant Despair and Doubting Castle 

XV. The Delectable Mountains 

XVI. Little Faith, the Flatterer, Atheist and 

Enchanted Ground 

XVII. Beulah Land ..... 

XVIII. Crossing the River 

XIX. Entering the Gate of the City 



36 

47 

59 
68 

79 
90 

97 
107 
117 
125 

134 
142 
150 
159 

169 
178 
186 
194 



Illustrations 

Christian Clothed in Armour . . . Frontispiece v' 

They harnessed him from head to foot with what 
was of proof 

Facing page . 
Evangelist Points the Way . . . . 28 ^ 

"Do you see yonder shining light ? " 

The Wicket Gate ...... 50 u^ 

So when Christian was stepping in, the other gave 
him a pull. 

Climbing the Hill Difficulty . . .68 <-" 

He fell from running to going, and from going to 
clambering upon his hands and knees, because of 
the steepness of the place. 

In the Valley of the Shadow of Death . . 100 > 

So he cried in my hearing, "O Lord, I beseech 
Thee, deliver my soul" 

Faithful's Martyrdom 130 ^ 

Last of all they burned him to ashes at the stake. 
Thus came Faithful to his end. 

In the Dungeon of Giant Despair . . 154 ^ 

Here, then, they lay from Wednesday morning till 
Saturday night without one bit of bread, or drop 
of drink, or light. 

Crossing the River . . . . . .188 

Hopeful also would endeavour to comfort him, saying, 
" Brother, I see the gate" 



11 



Short Sketch of the Life of 
John Bunyan 

JOHN BUNYAN was born in 1628 at Elstow, 
England, a mile from Bedford. His lot was 
cast in troublous times, an age of excitement 
and revolution. His history extends over three 
reigns, those of Charles I, Charles II, and James II, 
and the Protectorate of Oliver Cromwell. 

Eaely Life 

His father was a brazier, a mender of pots, pans 
and kettles. In common with all workers in tin 
who did not carry on their business all the year 
round at the same bench, or within the same four 
walls, Bunyan's father has been dubbed a tinker, 
and considered by some writers as of gipsy descent. 
The education and moral influence of home to young 
Bunyan was a blank. He tells us himself that " his 
descent was of a low and inconsiderable generation," 
his father's house being of that rank which is 
meanest and most despised in the land. His child- 
hood and boyhood were such as told against him in 
his after struggles for light and peace. 

He was educated at Bedford at a school for the 
poor. There was no compulsory education in those 

*3 



14 Short Sketch of 

days, and legal inability to leave school till the age 
of fourteen years was reached would have been 
laughed to scorn. 

Kude as was Bunyan's home, religious notions of 
some kind had been early and vividly impressed on 
him. Of course, it must be admitted that he was 
like the rest of the boys among whom he lived, in 
that he used bad language, often lied, and was a 
violent, passionate boy besides. Of himself he says 
that for lying and swearing he had no equal. 
Wickedness, he declares, became a second nature to 
him. Yet allowance must be made for Bunyan's 
overheated imagination concerning his depravity 
and sinfulness. 

When he left school his father brought him up 
at his own trade. Thus he lived at home and grew 
to manhood there, forming his own ideas of men 
and things out of such opportunities as the Elstow 
neighbourhood afforded. 

He was not a drunkard nor a man of loose 
character. Profane in his language, and coarse in 
his tastes, his native force of character would make 
him a ringleader among his associates. 

But even at that time he had his misgivings. In 
his moments of boisterous mirth and profane merri- 
ment he would be haunted by terror. He had 
forebodings of coming judgment which, like a fiend, 
would grasp him with an iron hand. These most 
sinful, most awful days were days of preparation, 
to tell upon an after history unspeakably precious 
to the world. 



The Life of John Bunyan 1 5 

Married Life 

Bunyan married at the age of nineteen, wisely 
and therefore well. Speaking of his marriage he 
says : " And my mercy was to light upon a wife 
whose father was counted godly. This woman and 
I, though we came together as poor as might be 
— not having so much as a dish or a spoon be- 
twixt us — yet this she had for her portion, 'The 
Plain Man's Pathway to Heaven,' and 'The Prac- 
tice of Piety,' which her father had left her 
when he died. These books, though they did not 
change my heart, did light in me some desire to 
religion." 

The eifect of his change of state was soon seen. 
On his marriage he became regular and respectable 
in his habits. " I fell in with the times to go to 
church twice a day, very devout to say and sing as 
the others did, yet retaining my wicked life. I was 
so overrun with superstition that I adored with 
great devotion even all things, both the high place, 
priest, cloak, vestment and service, and what else 
belonging to the church." 

Conviction of Sin 
At this stage Bunyan was a formalist. He re- 
vered priest and vestment and service, but continued 
to swear and break the Sabbath with unholy 
pleasures. Then the Bible came in for a share of his 
time, and, with other good books, gradually 
absorbed his attention and thoughts. One Sunday 
morning, when Bunyan was at church with his wife 



16 Short Sketch of 

(by church is meant the Church of England), the 
clergyman preached on the ungodliness of the 
Sabbath amusements, which was so pointed a mes- 
sage that Bunyan felt it was addressed to himself, 
and was much affected. He shook off the impression, 
and after dinner went as usual to the village green. 
He was on the point of striking a ball when a voice 
sounded in his ears, " Wilt thou leave thy sins and 
go to heaven, or have thy sins, and go to hell ? " 
He looked up. He imagined he saw Christ looking 
down at him from the sky. He concluded that it 
was too late for him to repent. He was past pardon. 
Did he welcome the heavenly admonition ? No, he 
flung from him any sobering thoughts which strug- 
gled for mastery in him, struck again at the ball, 
and, probably with a fierce oath, gave himself up 
to an irreligious life with more resolution than ever. 
Yet he had wild dreams and midnight visitations 
which could by no means be ignored. 

Once he saw the face of the heavens on fire, and 
heard a crackling and thundering firmament and 
the blast of the Archangel's trumpet ; he thought 
himself at the bar of God, and the world at an end. 
He cried out, " What shall I do ? The Day of 
Judgment is come, and I am not prepared." Im- 
mediately he heard a voice behind him exclaiming, 
" Bejpent ! " Bunyan's close study of the Bible 
only added fuel to the fire as yet. It furnished his 
fervid imagination with material by which he was 
at one time on the mountain tops and at another 
time deep down in the depths ; at one time his 



The Life of John Bunyan 17 

mind was full of the splendour of light, and the 
next full of the most abject terrors. 

So the fight of good and evil went on in the soul 
of the young man. The influence which women 
exercise for good is remarkably illustrated in Bun- 
yan's case. The patient and God-fearing wife of 
Bunyan must have been deeply distressed in mind 
in beholding the spiritual conflict which went on 
in his soul. But she had her consolations. She 
saw him grow into a passionate reader. In spite of 
his many backslidings into various forms of sin, 
she could discern the steady growth of an earnest 
striving after goodness and truth. He gave up, 
after a terrific struggle, his much loved dancing, 
the ringing of the church bells, the playing of tip- 
cat, and such-like on Sundays. But the habit of 
cursing — inveterate, as it seemed — remained. One 
day, when cursing and swearing after his wonted 
manner, standing at a neighbour's shop window, a 
woman of loose and abandoned habits rebuked him 
roundly. She said she trembled to hear him, and 
declared him bad enough to corrupt the youth of 
all the town. He was silenced. For very shame 
he hung his head, blushing that rebuke should come 
from such a quarter, and resolved from that moment 
to break away from the filthy and sinful habit. If 
the rebuke of a bad woman was the means of put- 
ting a check to his swearing and cursing, the kindly 
help of good women was the means of much assist- 
ance into the light. To his own wonder he did 
leave off swearing, and found he could speak better 



18 Short Sketch of 

and pleasanter than before. He set himself to re- 
form his life. He became strict in word and deed. 
His neighbours took him to be a new man, and 
marvelled at the change. 

"All this while," he says, " I knew not Christ, nor 
grace, nor hope, nor faith, and had I then died my 
state had been most fearful. I was but a poor, 
painted hypocrite, going about to establish my own 
righteousness." 

One day, when going about his calling in a street 
in Bedford, he fell in with three or four poor women, 
sitting at a door in the sun, talking about the things 
of God. Their expressions were wholly unintelli- 
gible to him. They were speaking of the wretched- 
ness of their own hearts, and did abhor their right- 
eousness as filthy rags and insufficient to do any 
good. They spoke of the new birth, and of the 
work of God in their hearts, which comforted and 
influenced them against the temptations of the 
Devil. 

Bunyan's heart tarried with them as they spoke, 
and true conviction set itself finally in his heart. 
He saw he lacked the tokens of a godly man. He 
sought them out, and spoke to them again and 
again. He could not stay away. He was on the 
threshold of a higher life. The women mentioned 
Bunyan to Mr. Gifford, the minister of the Baptist 
church at Bedford. Contact with that good man 
and conversation with him in the first instance only 
made Bunyan feel his condition more acutely than 
ever. The struggle grew fiercer and still more 






The Life of John Bunyan 19 

fierce, till the poor seeker after truth was distracted 
and bewildered beyond endurance. 

His turning point came one day when walking 
through the country lanes. He was musing on the 
wickedness of his heart and the enmity that was in 
him to God, when the Scripture came to his mind, 
" He hath made peace through the blood of His 
cross." He says : " I saw the justice of God and 
my sinful soul could embrace and kiss each other." 
Everything soon became clear, and he realized the 
meaning of his struggles and trials. 

Bunyan's Ministry 

From this moment Bunyan was a worker for 
Christ. He became a member of good Mr. Gifford's 
church, and at the latter 's death succeeded him in 
the office of pastor. 

His ministry was a most successful one. What 
he passed through had fitted him for the work of 
preaching to perishing sinners. His wonderful 
imagination, his power over the Saxon mother 
tongue, his intense earnestness, brought crowds to 
hear him. This went on for five years, till the [Res- 
toration involved him in danger. In 1660 he was 
arrested for holding an unlawful assembly for public 
worship. His sentence was : " You must be had 
back again to prison and there lie for three months 
following, and then, if you do not submit, and 
leave your preaching, you must be banished the 
realm ; and after that, if you are found in the realm 
without special license from the king, you must be 



20 Short Sketch of 

stretched by the neck for it." "If I was out of 
prison to-day," replied Bunyan, " I would preach 
the Gospel again to-morrow by the help of God." 

For twelve years Bunyan was confined in the 
county prison of Bedford. Subsequently he suffered 
a short imprisonment at the recreated gate-house of 
the old bridge which formerly spanned the Ouse. 
During the latter imprisonment he wrote the " Pil- 
grim's Progress " and " Grace Abounding to the Chief 
of Sinners " — the one an allegory, the other an auto- 
biography. He was released, and continued to preach 
until the proclamation of liberty of conscience was 
made in the reign of the second Charles. Then he 
preached in a meeting house of his own, and pro- 
claimed the Gospel until at length, in the sixty-first 
year of his age, with triumphant joy he entered the 
gates of the celestial city. 

He lived for sixteen years after his release from 
prison, and those years were fruitful with service 
for the Master. He visited London annually to 
preach for the Baptist churches, and if a day's 
notice of his coming were given the meeting house 
would be crowded to overflowing. Twelve hundred 
people would be found collected on a dark winter's 
morning before seven o'clock to hear a lecture from 
him. 

In Zoar Street, Southwark, London, the church 
was sometimes so crowded that he had to be lifted 
to the pulpit stairs over the heads of the people. 
In appearance he was a somewhat striking person- 
ality. " In countenance," wrote a friend, " he 



The Life of John Bunyan 2 1 

appeared to be of a somewhat stern and rough 
temper, but his conversation mild and affable, not 
given to much loquacity or discourse in company, 
unless some urgent occasion required it, observing 
never to boast of himself or his parts, but rather to 
seem low in his own eyes and to submit himself to 
the judgment of others. He had a sharp eye and 
an excellent judgment, and a lively, quick wit. He 
was tall of stature, strongly built, though not 
corpulent, somewhat of a ruddy face, with sparkling 
eyes, his hair reddish, but in his latter days time 
had sprinkled it plentifully with gray; his nose 
well set, but not declining nor bending ; his mouth 
moderately large ; his forehead somewhat high, 
and his habit [dress] plain and modest." 

Stories 

Like many a wild boy, he had very narrow escapes 
from death. Once he fell out of a boat into the 
Kiver Ouse. At another time he fell into the sea, 
on both occasions narrowly escaping with his life. 
Such nearness to death had a good effect for the 
time, but his contrition and thankfulness were short- 
lived. 

When about seventeen years of age he entered 
the army. Macaulay says he was a Parliamentarian, 
while Offer, another biographer, asserts that he 
belonged to the Eoyalists. As he tells us himself 
that he " feared God and honoured the king," it is 
probable that the latter statement is correct. Dur- 
ing his soldiering he had another providential escape 



22 Short Sketch of 

from death, which made a deep impression on him. 
At the siege of Leicester, in June, 1645, when he 
was about to take his turn of service, a comrade 
begged to be allowed to go in his stead. His sub- 
stitute, stationed in front of the besieging army, 
was shot through the head. Such an experience 
could not easily be forgotten. 

Another striking story is told of him in connec- 
tion with his prison life. A Quaker called upon 
him in jail one day. " Friend Bunyan," said he, 
" the Lord hath sent me to seek for thee, and I 
have been through several counties in search of thee. 
After searching half the jails of England I am glad 
to have found thee at last." Bunyan's reply reveals 
his humour. " If the Lord sent thee you would not 
have needed to take so much trouble to find me 
out, for He knows I have been in Bedford jail these 
seven years past." 

When Bunyan, after his release from jail, became 
a popular and powerful preacher, crowds flocked to 
hear him. Dr. Owen was once asked by Charles II 
how a man of his education could sit under a preach- 
ing tinker. He replied, " May it please your 
Majesty, I would give all my learning in exchange 
for the tinker's abilities." 

When the Bunyan statue was unveiled at Bedford 
the Dean of Westminster said : " Ladies and gentle- 
men, the Mayor has asked me to say a few words, 
and I shall obey him by making them very few. 
The Mayor has done his work this day, the Duke 
of Bedford has done his work, the sculptor and 



The Life of John Bunyan 23 

artist have done their work, and now I ask you to 
do your part in commemorating John Bunyan. Let 
every one of you who has not read the ' Pilgrim's 
Progress,' if there be any such person present, read 
it without delay. Let those who have read it one 
hundred times read it again for the one hundred 
and first time, and then follow out in your lives the 
lessons it teaches. You will then all be better 
monuments of John Bunyan than even this mag- 
nificent statue." 

When in prison he sometimes got permission to 
visit his family. Once, when he was with them, 
he meant to stay over night with his dear ones, but 
an inward monitor made him uneasy to get back to 
his " den," so he returned. At midnight a magis- 
trate's messenger arrived to spy the land. " Are 
all the prisoners safe ? " he asked the jailer. " Yes." 
" Is John Bunyan safe ? " " Yes." " Let me see 
him." He was called up and all passed off well. 

He was once going somewhere disguised as a 
wagoner. He was overtaken by a constable who 
had a warrant to arrest him. The constable asked 
him if he knew that devil of a fellow Bunyan. 
"Know him?" Bunyan said. "You might call 
him a devil if you knew him as well as I once did." 

The " Pilgrim's Progress " as Literature 

The " Pilgrim's Progress " ranks among the 

masterpieces of English literature. From among 

countless testimonies to its value and power three 

may be chosen as showing how far-reaching are 



24 Short Sketch 

the influence and genuineness of this matchless 
allegory. 

Dr. Samuel Johnston said that the " Pilgrim's 
Progress " " was one of the two or three works which 
he wished longer, and said that it had great merit, 
both for invention, imagination and the conduct of 
the story, and it has the best evidence of its merit, 
the general and continued approbation of mankind." 
Macaulay said : " We are not afraid to say that 
though there were many clever men in England 
during the latter half of the seventeenth century, 
there were only two minds which exhibited the 
imaginative faculty in a very eminent degree. One 
of them produced ' Paradise Lost,' and the other 
the ' Pilgrim's Progress.' " R. L. Stevenson, when 
mentioning his best loved books, says : " Lastly, I 
must name the ' Pilgrim's Progress,' a book which 
breathes of every beautiful and valuable emotion." 

A profound thinker like Coleridge wrote : " I 
know of no book, the Bible excepted as above all 
comparison, which I in my judgment could so safely 
recommend, as teaching and enforcing the whole 
saving truth, according to the mind that is in Christ 
Jesus, as the ' Pilgrim's Progress.' " 



CHKISTIAN BEGINS HIS JOUKNEY— 

OBSTINATE, PLIABLE AND THE 

SLOUGH OF DESPOND 

IN a desolate place, called " the wilderness of 
this world," there was a Den, in which a man 
lay down to sleep, and as he slept he dreamed 
a dream. He saw in his dream a man clothed with 
rags, standing in a certain place with his face from 
his own house, a book in his hand, and a great 
burden upon his back. 1 As he read the book he 
cried and wept, and trembled, and called out in his 
pain, " What shall I do ? " 2 

At last he went home and tried to hide his grief, 
that his wife and children might not know his sad- 
ness ; but he could not be silent long, for his trouble 
became worse. 

So he said to his dear ones : " Oh, my dear wife 
and children, I am in great trouble because a load 
is pressing me down, and I am told the city we live 
in will be burned with fire from heaven, and unless 
we go away, you, my dear wife, and you, my dar- 
ling children, and I will all be ruined. And I can- 
not see any way of escape." 

1 Isa. lxiv. 6 ; Luke xiv. 33 ; Ps. xxxviii. 4. 
2 Aotsii. 37; xvi. 30. 

25 



26 Christian Begins His Journey 

When all the friends heard him say these things 
they were surprised. They did not believe what he 
said, but thought he was sick or mad, and said he 
had better go to bed and he would be better the 
next day. But finding this plan fail, they were 
angry, and some coaxed him and others laughed at 
him. For he could not sleep, but passed the long 
hours of the night in sighs and tears, and in the 
morning told his wife and friends that he felt 
"worse and worse." So he could get no peace 
night or day, and all that was said to him only 
made him worse, because he was sure he must 
leave the place where he lived, and the load of sin 
on his back became heavier every day. 

Much of his time he spent walking alone in the 
fields, and there he read his book and often prayed. 

One day, as he walked along, reading from his 
book, he cried out aloud in great pain of mind, 
" What shall I do to be saved ? " " 

He looked this way and that as if he would run ; 
yet he stood still because he did not know which 
way to go. At last he saw a man coming to him 
whose name was Evangelist, who asked him, " Why 
are you crying ? " " Sir," said the man, " I read 
in this book that I must die, and after death I 
must be judged, 2 and I do not like to die, 3 and I 
am too sinful to be judged." 4 " But why, then," 
said Evangelist, " do you stand still ? " 

He replied, " Because I know not where to go." 

1 Acts xvi. 29, 30. 2 Heb. ix. 27. 

3 Job xvi. 20-22. * Ezek. xxii. 14. 



Obstinate, Pliable and Slough of Despond 27 

Then Evangelist gave him a parchment roll, and 
on it was written : " Flee from the wrath to 
come." 1 

The man looked at it and looked at Evangelist, 
and said : " Where, then, must I fly ? " 

Evangelist pointed across a very wide field, and 
said : 

" Do you see that wooden gate ? " a 

The man said, " No," for the gate was very far 
away. 

" Do you see that light shining in the dis- 
tance?" 3 

" I think I do." 

Then said Evangelist : " Keep that light in your 
eye, and go up directly to it ; so you shall see the 
gate, at which, when you knock, you will be told 
what to do." 

So the dreamer saw that the man began to run. 
Now he had not run very far from his own door, 
but his wife and little ones saw it and began to call 
after him to return. But the man put his fingers 
in his ears and ran on, crying : 

" Life ! Life ! Eternal Life ! " 4 

So he looked not behind him, but fled towards the 
middle of the plain. 5 

Christian — for that was his name — did not once 
look behind him. His friends came out to watch 
him, and as he ran some laughed and others cried 

1 Matt. iii. 7. 9 Matt. vii. 13, 14. 

3 Ps. cxix. 105 ; 2 Pet. i. 19. 

* Luke xiv. 26. 6 Gen. xix. 12. 



28 Christian Begins His Journey 

out for him to return. Two, bolder than the rest, 
followed him to bring him back by force. 

The name of one was Obstinate, and the other 
Pliable. 

In a little time they caught up with him. 

Then said the man : " Friends, why do you come 
after me ? " 

" To take you back with us," they answered. 

But he said, " That can never be. Better for you 
to come away from this city, that will be burned 
up some day." 

" What," said Obstinate, " and leave all our 
friends and comforts behind us ? " 

" Yes," said Christian, " for all that you leave 
behind you and give up is not nearly so good as a 
little of that which I hope to enjoy. 1 Come with 
me, and see if I do not speak the truth." 

" What are the things you seek, since you leave 
all the world to find then ? " said Obstinate. 

"I seek," said Christian, "riches that shall 
last forever and ever, 2 which are safely kept in 
heaven, 3 and will be given at the right time to 
those who earnestly seek them. Read what my 
book says, if you like." 

" Take your book away," said Obstinate. " Will 
you go back with us or not ? " 

" ISTo," said Christian, " I will not. I have begun 
and I will not go back." 4 

"Come, then, friend Pliable," said Obstinate, 

1 2 Cor. iv. 18. 2 1 Pet. i. 4. 

3 Heb. xi. 16. *Lukeix. 62. 




EVANGELIST POINTS THE WAY 

Do you see yonder shining light?" 



Obstinate, Pliable and Slough of Despond 29 

" let us turn again and go home without him. 
There are many who, when they become like him, 
are wiser in their own eyes than anybody else." 

Then said Pliable : " Don't scold. If what good 
Christian says is true, the things he seeks are better 
than what we have. I believe I shall go with him." 

" What ! " cried Obstinate, " more fools still ! Be 
guided by me and go back. You don't know where 
such a madman will lead you. Go back, go back, 
and be wise." 

But Christian said : " Come with me, and do not 
go back, for there are such great and lovely things 
to be had, and many more glories besides, as I told 
you already. If you do not believe me, read here 
in this book." 

" Well, friend Obstinate," said Pliable, " I have 
made up my mind ; I intend to go with this good 
man and to share all things with him. But, friend 
Christian, do you know the way to this place ? " 

Christian replied : " The way was pointed out by 
a man whose name is Evangelist. He said for me 
to hasten to a little gate that is in front of us, 
where we shall be told all we need to know." 

Pliable said, " Come, then, good friend, let us be 
going." 

So Christian and Pliable went talking over the 
fields, and thus they spoke to one another : 

" Come, friend Pliable, how are you ? I am 
glad you are going along with me. If Obstinate 
had felt the pains and troubles which hurt me he 
would not have gone back." 



30 Christian Begins His Journey 

" Well, Christian," said Pliable, 
alone, tell me more about the things which we are 
to enjoy where we are going. Do you think that 
the words of your book are true ? " 

Christian answered, "Yes, indeed, for it was 
made by One that cannot lie." 1 

" Well answered ; and what are they ? " said 
Pliable. 

" There is a kingdom that will never end for us 
to live in, and life that will never end to be given 
to us, so that we may live there forever." 2 

" Well said ; and what else ? " 

" There are crowns of glory to be given us, and 
robes that will make us shine like the sun. 3 There 
shall be no more crying nor sorrow, for He that is 
the owner of that place will wipe away all tears 
from our eyes." 4 

" And," said Pliable, " what friends shall we have 
there?" 

" There we shall be with angels so lovely and 
bright that you can hardly look on them. 5 There 
also shall you meet with thousands and tens of 
thousands that have gone before us to that place. 
All of them are loving and holy, every one walking 
in the sight of God, and not one ever doing any- 
thing to make Him angry. There we shall see 
holy virgins with their harps ; 6 there we shall see 

1 Titus i. 2. 2 Isa. xlv. 17 ; John x. 27-29. 

3 2 Tim. iv. 8; Rev. iii. 4; Matt. xiii. 43. 

* Isa. xxv. 8 ; Rev. vii. 16, 17 ; xxi. 4. 

5 Isa. vi. 2 ; 1 Thess. iv. 16, 17 ; Rev. v. 11. 6 Rev. xiv. 1-5. 









Obstinate, Pliable and Slough of Despond 31 

men that by the world were cut in pieces, burned 
in flames, drowned in seas, for the love that they 
had to the Lord of heaven." * 

All this made Pliable very happy, and he was 
eager to go on. He asked how they were to share 
in such lovely things. 

"The Lord, the owner of the country," said 
Christian, " has told us how in this book. 2 If we 
are in earnest He will give them to us freely." 

" Well, good Christian," said Pliable, " glad I am 
to hear these things. Come on, let us mend our 
pace." 

" I cannot go as fast as I would like," said Chris- 
tian, " because of the load on my back." 

Now the dreamer saw that, just as they had 
ended this talk, they drew near to a very muddy 
hole that was in the midst of the fields. And be- 
cause they were not looking where they were going 
both fell suddenly in. It was called the Slough or 
pit of Despond. Here they struggled for a time, 
being very much covered with mud, and Christian, 
because of the heavy load on his back, began to 
sink in the mire. Then said Pliable : 

" Ah, friend Christian, where are you now ? " 

"Keally," said Christian, " I do not know." 

At this Pliable began to get very angry, and 
said : " Is this the happiness you have told me of 
all the while ? If we get on so badly at the first, 
what may we expect from now till our journey's 
end ? If I escape from this place with my life you 

1 John xii. 25. 2 Isa. lv. 1-2. 



32 Christian Begins His Journey 

may go on alone, for I shall not go with you." 
And with that he gave a great struggle or two and 
got out of the mud on that side of the hollow which 
was next his own house. So he went away, and 
Christian saw him no more. 

Thus Christian was left to tumble in the Slough 
of Despond alone, but he still tried to struggle to 
that side of the pit which was farthest away from 
his own home and nearest to the wicket gate. But 
he could not get out because of the burden on his 
back. 

At last a man came to him whose name was 
Help, who asked him what he was doing there. 

" Sir," said Christian, " a man named Evangelist 
bid me go this way. He also showed me yonder 
gate, that I might escape the wrath to come, and 
as I was going I fell in here." 

" But," said Help, " why did you not look for the 
steps?" 

" I was so afraid," said Christian, " that I did 
not look where I was going, and so I fell in." 

" Then," said Help, " give me your hand." So 
he gave him his hand and Help drew him out, 1 and 
set him on firm ground and bade him go on his 
way. 

Exposition 

The man who went to sleep and dreamed was 

John Bunyan. All he tells us that happened to 

Christian were the things he saw in his dream. 

1 Ps. xl. 2. 



Obstinate, Pliable and Slough of Despond 33 

The Den was Bedford jail, where the " Pilgrim's 
Progress " was written. 

The rags which Christian wore were his good 
deeds ; the book he held in his hand was the Bible, 
and the great bundle on his back the sins of many 
years. 

The parchment roll given to Christian was a text 
from the Bible. The Word of God is still the sure 
way to Christ. The wooden gate to which Evan- 
gelist points Christian is Christ, to whom we must 
all go, for He is the Door into the fold of God. 

Christian could not see the gate, but he saw a 
light, and that was his guide. God gives us light 
in our souls to guide us to Christ. " Then shall we 
know, if we follow on to know the Lord." 

Obstinate and Pliable are like men we meet every 
day. Obstinate is a man who laughs at the Word 
of God and jests at goodness, and thinks all are 
fools who follow the Lord Jesus Christ. He im- 
agines he cannot go wrong, and that he knows 
everything. He believes he is so wise that all who 
do not agree with him are stupid and blind. He 
has a very bad temper, and will not listen to what 
others say. In the end he becomes a sour, unkind 
and unhappy man. 

Pliable is a man easily coaxed to do what is right. 
He makes a good start to become a child of God. 
At first he is one of the most hopeful of young 
people. He agrees to all he hears about God, the 
Bible, sin and heaven. But he does not feel the 
load on his back like Christian, for he does not think 



34 Christian Begins His Journey 

he is a great sinner in the sight of God. It is when 
we feel our sins that there is a great load of guilt 
on our souls. Yet Pliable likes to hear about 
heaven, and is quite willing to go there if it does 
not take too much trouble. And he is always in a 
hurry. He was in a hurry to go with Christian, 
and he was in a great hurry to get away again. 

Evangelist is a name given to one who brings 
good news, a preacher of the Gospel. Even the 
great Martin Luther was glad to be helped by 
Evangelist when he had tried to find the way and 
could not. Staupitz, a good monk, after he had 
heard all Martin Luther told him about his troubles 
and fears and trials, said : " Look at the wounds of 
Jesus Christ, to the blood that He shed for you ; it 
is there that the grace of God will appear to you." 
And there he found peace. 

The Slough of Despond was the first test. Pliable 
did not like it, so he gave up his hopes of heaven 
rather than face this trial. This muddy pit is a 
picture of dark times of doubts and fears which all 
of us feel when we are trying to find our way to 
Christ. Then we think we shall never be able to 
reach Him, and we grow sad, and still sadder. 
And if we give up hope, we sink down deeper than 
ever. But God does not forget. He sent a good 
man whose name was Help to get Christian out of 
the mud. And you will notice that Christian had 
to do his part, for Help could never have pulled 
him out if he had not tried his best also. So God 
helps those who help themselves. 



Obstinate, Pliable and Slough of Despond 35 

But what about the steps? They were there, 
just like stepping-stones across a stream, yet Chris- 
tian did not see them because he did not look. Now 
the steps are the promises of God in His own holy 
Word. Here is one: "When thou passest through 
the waters I will be with thee ; and through the 
rivers, they shall not overflow thee; when thou 
walkest through the fire thou shalt not be burned." 
Also: "I, even I, am He that blotteth out thy 
transgressions for My own sake, and will not re- 
member thy sins." 

Questions 

How was the man dressed, and what was his 
name? 

What did he carry on his back ? 

What did he cry out, and what did he tell his 
wife and children ? 

Who met Christian as he walked in the fields ? 

What did Evangelist give Christian and what 
was written on it ? 

Where did Evangelist tell Christian to go ? 

Who followed Christian in order to bring him 
back? 

What became of Obstinate ? 

What did Christian and Pliable talk about ? 

What became of Pliable ? 

Who helped Christian out of the Slough of 
Despond ? 

Describe the Slough of Despond. 



II 

CHRISTIAN TEAPPED BY MR. WORLDLY 
WISEMAN 

NOW as Christian was walking by himself, 
he saw far off some one crossing over the 
field to meet him ; and they came face to 
face where their paths met. The gentleman's name 
was Mr. Worldly Wiseman. He lived in the town 
of Carnal Policy, a very large town, and quite near 
to the place whence Christian came. This man, 
then, meeting with Christian, and having a good 
idea who he was, for Christian's going away from 
the City of Destruction was much talked about ; 
not only in the town where he lived, but also in 
many other places, saw that Christian was in 
trouble and very sad, and began to talk with him. 

" How now, good fellow," said he, " where are 
you going with your heavy burden ? " 

" A heavy load, indeed," said Christian, " as ever 
a poor creature carried. And you ask me where I 
am going? I will tell you, sir. I am going to 
yon wicket gate before me, for I am told that 
when I get there I shall be shown how I may get 
rid of my heavy burden." 

" Have you a wife and children ? " said Mr. 
Worldly Wiseman. 

3« 



Mr. Worldly Wiseman 37 

" Yes," said Christian, " but I am so tired of this 
heavy load that I do not enjoy them as I once did ; 
sometimes I feel as if I had none." 1 

" Will you listen to me," said Mr. Worldly Wise- 
man, " if I give you good advice ? " 

" If it be good I will," said Christian, " f or I am 
very much in need of it." 

Mr. Worldly Wiseman : " I would advise you 
then that you get rid of your load with all haste, 
for you will never be happy in your mind till then ; 
nor can you enjoy the blessings of God till then." 

Christian : " That is what I seek ; to be rid for- 
ever of this heavy burden ; but get it off my back 
myself I cannot, nor is there any man in our 
country that can take it off my shoulders; so I 
am going this way, as I told you, that I may be 
rid of my burden." 

Worldly Wiseman : " Who told you to go this 
way to get rid of your burden ? " 

Christian : "A man who seemed to me to be a 
great and good person. His name was Evan- 
gelist." 

Worldly Wiseman : " He gave you very bad ad- 
vice ! There is not a more dangerous way in the 
world than this he showed to you ; and that you 
shall find if you heed what he says. You have 
been in trouble already, for I see the mud of the 
Slough of Despond is on you, and that is only the 
beginning of the sorrows that do attend those that 
go on that way. Listen to me. I am much older 

1 1 Cor. vii. 29. 



38 Christian Trapped by 

than you. If you go on this road, you will be 
hungry, tired, in pain, and in great danger. You 
will meet with lions, dragons and many other fear- 
ful things, and even death. These things are true, 
and many men have said so who ought to know. 
Now why should you destroy yourself on the ad- 
vice of a person you did not know ? " 

Christian : " Why, sir, this burden on my back 
is more terrible than all these things ; and I do not 
care what I meet with, if I can get rid of my heavy 
load." 

Worldly Wiseman : " How did you find out you 
had a burden at first ? " 

Christian : "By reading this book in my hand." 

Worldly Wiseman : "I thought so, and you made 
the same mistake of other weak men, reading things 
you cannot understand, and now you are going on 
a very dangerous journey to get something you 
know not what." 

Christian : " I know what I want. It is to be 
rid of my heavy burden." 

Worldly Wiseman : " But why go this way, 
which is so dangerous, when I can tell you how 
to get rid of your burden without running into any 
dangers ? And this way is quite near by, and you 
will be safe and happy and find many friends." 

Christian : " Oh, sir, tell me this way ! " 

Worldly Wiseman : " In yonder village called 
Morality there lives a gentleman whose name is 
Legality, a very wise man of good name, who can 
help you off with your burden. He has helped 



Mr. Worldly Wiseman 39 

many in this way, and besides he has cured those 
who are almost mad because of their heavy bur- 
dens. If you go to him you will be helped at once. 
His house is not quite a mile from where we stand, 
and if he is not at home, he has a son, whose name 
is Civility, who can do as well as the old gentleman 
himself. And if you wish to stay in this town you 
can send for your wife and children. There are 
houses standing empty and you may have one at a 
cheap rent. Food is cheap and good, and you are 
sure to make many kind friends." 

Now Christian said to himself, that if this were 
true he had better take Mr. Worldly Wiseman's ad- 
vice, so he asked the way to Legality's house. 

Worldly Wiseman : " Do you see yonder high 
hill?" 

Christian : " Yes, very well." 
Worldly Wiseman : " By that hill you must go, 
and the first house you come to is his." 

So Christian turned out of his way to go to Mr. 
Legality's house for help ; but when he got close to 
the hill it seemed so high, and that side of it which 
was next the pathway hung over so much that he 
was afraid to go on, lest it should fall on his head. 
Also his burden now seemed heavier to him than 
when he was on his way. 

Flashes of fire ' came out of the hill that made 

Christian afraid he would be burned, and he shook 

with fear. 2 And now he began to be sorry that he 

had taken Mr. Worldly Wiseman's advice; and 

1 Ex. xix. 16, 18. 2 Heb. xii. 21. 



4<D Christian Trapped by 

when he saw Evangelist coming to him he began 
to blush with shame. So Evangelist came nearer 
and nearer ; he looked at Christian sternly and said 
to him : 

" What are you doing here, Christian ? " 
But poor Christian did not know what to say, so 
he did not answer. Then Evangelist said : " Are 
you not the man I found crying outside the walls 
of the City of Destruction ? " 

Christian : " Yes, dear sir, I am the man." 
Evangelist : " Did I not show you the way to 
the wicket gate ? How is it then that you are so 
quickly turned aside, for you are now out of the 
way." 

Christian : " I met with a gentleman as soon as 
I had got over the Slough of Despond, who told 
me I might, if I wished, find a man in the town 
before me who could take off my burden. He 
talked much with me and at last got me to yield, 
so I came here, but when I saw this hill, and how 
it hangs over the pathway, I came to a standstill 
for fear it should fall on my head." 

Evangelist : " What said that gentleman to 
you ? " 

Christian : " He asked me where I was going, 
also if I had a family. I told him, and said I was 
so laden with the burden that is on my back that I 
did not enjoy my wife and children as I used to." 
Evangelist : " And what did he say ? " 
Christian : " He bade me with haste get rid of 
my burden, "and said that he knew a shorter and 



Mr. Worldly Wiseman 41 

better way than mine, not nearly so hard ; and 
sent me to a gentleman who had skill to take off 
these burdens. I believed him and turned out of 
the way, thinking I should soon be rid of my 
burden. But when I saw where I was I became 
afraid, and now I know not what to do." 

Then Evangelist said : " Stand still a little that 
I may show thee the words of God." So he stood 
trembling. Then said Evangelist, " See that ye 
refuse not him that speaketh. For if they escaped 
not who refused him that spake on earth, how 
much more shall not we escape if we turn away 
from him that speaketh from heaven." ' And he 
said, " The just shall live by faith," and many other 
words. 

Then Christian fell at his feet as dead, crying, 
" Woe is me, for I am undone." 

Then Evangelist caught him by the hand and 
said, " Be not faithless but believing," 2 and Chris- 
tian began to cheer up again and stood on his feet, 
trembling. 

Then Evangelist went on to say : " The man who 
met you is Mr. Worldly Wiseman, and rightly is 
he so called, partly because he cares only for the 
teachings of this world 3 (therefore he always goes 
to the town of Morality to church), and partly be- 
cause he loves the kind of teaching which does not 
compel him to come to the cross.* Now there are 
three things in this man's advice which you must 

1 Heb. xii. 25. a John xx. 27. 

3 1 John iv. 5. * Gal. vi. 12. 



42 Christian Trapped by 

always hate : (1) His turning you out of the way ; 
(2) his trying to make you hate the cross ; (3) and 
his setting of your feet in the way that leads to 
death. You must hate his turning you out of the 
way, and your own consenting to go out of the 
way, because this is to reject what God has said in 
His Word for the advice of a Worldly Wiseman. 
The Lord says, " Strive to enter in at the strait 
gate " 1 — the gate to which I sent you — " for strait 
is the gate that leadeth to life and few there be 
that find it." 2 This wicked man has turned you 
away from the little wooden gate and the way 
that leads to it, and has brought you almost to 
death. 

"Then you must hate his trying to make the 
cross hateful to you. You must love it more than 
all the riches of the world. 3 The King of Glory 
has said that he that ' will save his life shall lose 
it.' Then you must hate his setting your feet in 
the way that leads to death. And you must think 
of him whom he sent you to, and also how that 
person could never lift the burden off your back. 

"The name of that man is Legality, and how 
could he help you when he has a burden of his 
own ? No man was ever yet set free of his burden 
by him, nor is ever likely to be, for by the deeds 
of the law no man living can be rid of his burden. 
So both Mr. Worldly Wiseman and his son Civility 
are bad men. Believe me, there is nothing in all 

1 Luke xiii. 24. 2 Matfc. vii. 13, 14. 

3 Heb. xi. 25, 26. 



Mr. Worldly Wiseman 43 

they have said beyond a desire to cheat you, and 
take you away from the road in which I had set 
you." 

After this Evangelist called aloud to the heavens, 
and there came words and fire out of the hill under 
which Christian stood, and these were the words : 
" As many as are of the works of the law are under 
the curse," for it is written " Cursed is every one 
that continueth not in all things which are written 
in the book of the law to do them." ' 

Now Christian looked for nothing but death, and 
began to cry out, calling himself a thousand fools 
for listening to the words of such a man as Worldly 
Wiseman. Then he said to Evangelist : 

" Sir, what do you think ? Is there any hope ? 
May I now go back and go up to the wicket gate ; 
I am sorry I gave heed to this man's advice, but 
may my sin be forgiven ? " 

Evangelist replied, saying: "Your sin is very 
great, for you have committed two evils ; you have 
forsaken the way that is good, to walk in evil paths. 
Yet will the man at the gate receive you, for he has 
good-will for men. Only be very sure that you do 
not turn aside again." 

Then Christian began to go back to the right 
way, and Evangelist, after he had kissed him, gave 
him a smile, and wished him Godspeed. So Chris- 
tian went on with haste, and would speak to no 
man by the way. He went on like one who was 
walking on forbidden ground, and could not think 
1 Gal. iii. 10. 



44 Christian Trapped by 

himself safe till he was in the way which he left to 
follow Mr. Worldly Wiseman's advice. 

Exposition 
Up till now Christian had not gone wrong. 
Neither Pliable nor Obstinate nor his friends nor 
family could get him to give up his journey. But 
so clever is Mr. Worldly Wiseman in the use of 
words and in reasoning that he talks Christian 
into doing what is wrong. This wrong act of 
Christian's might not have occurred if he had not 
been alone — " he was walking by himself " — when 
Mr. Worldly Wiseman came up and spoke to him. 
Good company helps to keep us from sinful acts 
and thoughts and words. The talk of Mr. Worldly 
Wiseman shows how much pride there was in his 
heart. He thinks he can get into heaven because 
he is a good man, when he is really a very bad man, 
with a heart full of sin. Mr. Worldly Wiseman 
does not think sin a bad thing, so he does not see 
the need of a Saviour. Mr. Worldly Wiseman does 
not think much of the Bible, for that was the book 
which Christian had in his hand and for which Mr. 
Worldly Wiseman had no regard, but spoke of it 
with dislike. All advice is bad which is against the 
teachings of the Bible. God's way is always best. 
Do not listen to any one who makes light of sin, or 
leads you to think less of the Word of God. The 
kind of people who live in the town of Morality are 
Pharisees. Our Lord, when on earth, told them 
that all their prayers and giving to the poor, and 



Mr. Worldly Wiseman 45 

keeping of the commandments would not save 
them. No one can be saved by trying to be good. 
All must go in at the wicket gate. John Newton 
tried to save himself and failed. Then he trusted 
Christ and was made happy in Him. The great 
Fletcher, of Madeley, had to give up trying to make 
himself good, and when he asked Christ to receive 
him, he found peace and joy in Him. 

" Just as I am, without one plea 
But that Thy blood was shed for me 
And that Thou bid'st me come to Thee, 
O Lamb of God, I come." 

Mr. Worldly Wiseman would teach men not to 
look beyond this life, but Evangelist would have 
them think of heaven and hell. He loves the com- 
pany of the rich and great men. He is fond of 
money, and to get it will pretend to be a good man, if 
he can in that way make more than by doing wrong. 
We should never say we are good merely to please 
people and make them think more highly of us. 
Seek not the praise of men, nor try to make a profit 
out of religion. We must please God. Remember 
the words the Germans delight in saying, " We 
Germans fear God, and fear no other." And re- 
member that the only way to life is the way of the 
cross. 

Questions 

Whom did Christian meet after he left the Slough 
of Despond ? 



46 Christian Trapped 

"Where did this man live, and what advice did he 
give to Christian ? 

Whom did he tell Christian to see ? 

Did Christian follow his advice ? 

What happened to Christian then ? 

What old friend met him ? 

What did Evangelist say to Christian ? 

Why was Christian to hate Mr. Worldly Wise- 
man's advice ? 

Why could not Mr. Legality take Christian's bur- 
den off his back ? 

Why did Christian lose heart ? 

What did he expect ? 

What question did he ask Evangelist ? 

What did Evangelist say and do when Christian 
asked for forgiveness ? 

What did Christian do when Evangelist left him ? 



Ill 



THE WICKET GATE AM) THE INTEEPEE- 
TEK'S HOUSE 



I 



N a short time Christian got up to the wicket 
gate. Now over the gate was written, 
" Knock and it shall be opened unto you." ' 



" He that will enter in must first without 
Stand knocking at the Gate, nor need he doubt 
That is a Knocker but to enter in ; 
For God can love him, and forget his sin." 

He knocked, therefore, more than once or twice, 
saying, 

" May I now enter here? Will He within 
Open to sorry me, though I have been 
An undeserving rebel ! Then shall I 
Not fail to sing His lasting praise on high." 

At last there came a grave person to the gate 
named Good-will, who asked, Who was there ? and 
whence he came ? and what he would have ? 

Christian said : " Here is a poor, burdened sin- 
ner. I come from the City of Destruction, but am 
going to Mount Zion that I may be saved from the 
wrath to come. I would like to know if you are 
willing to let me in, because I am told that this 
gate is the right way." 

1 Matt. vii. 7. 
47 



48 The Wicket Gate and 

Good-will : " I am willing with all my heart " ; 
and with that he opened the gate. 

So when Christian was stepping in the other gave 
him a pull. Then said Christian, u Why did you do 
that ? " Good- will said : " A little distance away 
from this gate there is a strong castle, of which 
Beelzebub is the captain. And from that castle 
both he and those who live with him shoot arrows 
at those that come up to this gate, hoping that 
they may kill them before they enter in." 

Christian was very glad and thankful that he was 
safe. The man at the gate asked him who showed 
him the way to the wicket gate. 

" Evangelist told me to come this way and knock, 
and that you, sir, would tell me what to do." 

Good-will : " An open door is set before you and 
no man can shut it. But how is it that you came 
alone ? " 

Christian : " Because none of my friends saw 
their danger as I saw mine." 

Good-will : " Did any of them know of your 
coming ? " 

Christian : " Yes. My wife and children saw 
me go, and called after me to return. And some of 
my friends also called after me, but I put my 
fingers in my ears, and so came on my way. Ob- 
stinate and Pliable tried to bring me back, but 
when they saw they could not get me to return 
Obstinate went back, but Pliable came a little way." 
Then Christian told Good-will how both he and 
Pliable came to the Slough of Despond, into which 



The Interpreter's House 49 

they suddenly fell. Pliable was then made sad and 
unhappy, and would not go on. But, getting out 
at the side next his own house, he went his way 
home again. "And if Pliable went home," said 
Christian, " I turned out of the way, and was no 
better than he, for I found myself in the way of 
death, because I did what Mr. Worldly Wiseman 
told me to do." 

Good-will : " Oh, did he meet you ? Did he try 
to make you go to Mr. Legality to ease your heavy 
load? They are both cheats. But did you take 
his advice ? " 

Christian : " Yes, as far as I dare. I went to 
find Mr. Legality, but I thought the hill would fall 
on my head, so I went no farther." 

Good-toill : " That mountain has been the death 
of many, and will be the death of many more." 

Christian : " Indeed, I do not know what would 
have become of me if Evangelist had not met me 
again. It was God's mercy that he met me, for 
else I would never have come here. But now I am 
come; I am indeed more fit for death by that 
mountain than to stand talking with my Lord, but 
oh, what a favour this is to me that I am allowed 
to enter here ! " 

Good-will : " We do not object. No matter what 
they may have done before they came here, they 
are not cast out. 1 Good Christian, come with me 
and I will teach you the way you must go. Look 
before you ; do you see that narrow way ? That 

1 John vi. 37. 



50 The Wicket Gate and 

is the way you must go. It was built by the pa- 
triarchs, prophets, Christ and His apostles, and is 
as straight as a rule can make it." 

Christian : " Are there no turnings or windings 
by which a stranger may lose his way ? " 

Good-will : " Yes, there are many paths which 
branch off from this, and they are crooked and 
wide. You will always know the right from the 
wrong; the right way alone is narrow and straight." ' 

Then the Dreamer heard Christian ask Good- will 
if he could not help him off with the burden that 
was on his back, for as yet he had not got rid of it ; 
but Good- will told him he must bear it till he 
came to a place where it would fall off his back by 
itself. 

Exposition 
When Christian came to the wicket gate he 
knocked many times, not once or twice. He was 
in earnest, and could not stop knocking till he got 
in. His hand trembled with fear, but he would not 
let go. "We knock when we pray. Prayer is the 
means we are to use to open the wicket gate. And 
we are to pray till the gate opens and Good-will 
appears. Good-will is none other than Christ. He 
takes a great interest in all, and has such a kind 
and loving heart that he asks after Obstinate, 
Pliable and Christian's family. He would have 
been glad if they all had come to the wicket gate. 
Good-will had a grave look on his face. What 
1 Matt. vii. 14. 




THE WICKET GATE 
So when Christian was stepping in, the other gave him a pull. 



The Interpreters House 51 

made him so sad was the thought of how few leave 
the City of Destruction to go to Mount Zion. He 
loves to help pilgrims, for he not only opens the 
door, but pulls them in. It is just when we are 
about to enter that the Evil One may do his best to 
hurt us. For the great desire of Satan is to keep 
us from coming to Christ. But Christ is willing 
with all His heart to take us to Himself, no matter 
what we have done. Christ is the wicket gate. 
He said : "lam the door. By Me, if any man will 
enter in, he shall be saved." We come to Him by 
prayer, and thus knock, knock. Then Christ hears 
us and comes to pull us to Himself. We tell Him, 
as Christian did, who we are, what we want, and 
where we desire to go. Not only will He make us 
His own, but He will show us how to find the nar- 
row way, how to know it, and how to keep on it. 
Even the burden on Christian's back, which was the 
weight of his sins, did not keep him out. So our 
sins do not keep us from Christ, if we confess them 
and ask Him to take them away. As He told 
Christian, so He will tell us how to get the great 
load off our souls. 

Christian's coming in at the wicket gate was only 
the start of his journey. He was not to stay there. 
He must go on. So Good-will says, " I will teach 
you about the way you must go." Christ said long 
ago, "Come unto Me," "Come after Me." So 
when we give ourselves to Jesus we make a begin- 
ning in the narrow way. After that we are to 
walk in that way and do as He tells us. 



52 The Wicket Gate and 

The Interpreter's House 

Then Christian began to get ready for his jour- 
ney. So Good-will told him that when he had gone 
some distance from the wicket gate he would come 
to a house called the House of the Interpreter. He 
was to knock at the door, and he would be taken 
in and shown many wonderful things. Then Chris- 
tian took leave of his friend, and he again bade him 
Godspeed. 

So Christian walked on till he came to the House 
of the Interpreter, where he knocked over and over 
again. At last one came to the door and asked 
who was there. 

Christian : " Sir, here is a pilgrim who was told 
by a friend of the good man of this house to call 
here. I would like to speak to the master of the 
house." 

So he called for the master of the house, who, 
when he came, asked Christian what he wanted. 

Christian : " Sir, I am a man who has come from 
the City of Destruction, and am going to Mount 
Zion, and I was told by the man that stands at the 
wicket gate, at the head of this way, that if I called 
here you would show me wonderful things, such as 
would be a help to me in my journey. " 

Interpreter : " Come in. I will show you what 
will be a great help to you." 

So he bade his man light a candle, and asked 
Christian to follow him. He took him into a room, 
and told his man to open the door. When the door 
was opened Christian saw the picture of a very 



The Interpreters House 53 

grave person hanging up against the wall, and this 
is what it was like : His eyes were lifted up to 
heaven, the best of books was in his hand, the law 
of truth was written upon his lips, the world was 
behind his back. He stood as if he pleaded with 
men, and a crown of gold was over his head. 

When Christian said, " What is the meaning of 
this ? " Interpreter replied, " The man whose pic- 
ture you see is as rare as one in a thousand. And 
as you see his eyes are lifted up to heaven, the best 
of books is in his hands and the law of truth written 
on his lips ; this is to show you that his work is to 
know and tell dark things to sinners, even as you 
see him stand as if he pleaded with men. And you 
see the world cast behind him, and a crown hangs 
over his head. This will show you that he cares 
nothing for the things that are present. He loves 
the service of his Master, and is sure in the next 
world to have glory for his reward. 

" Now," said Interpreter, " I have shown you 
this picture first because the man whose picture 
this is is the only man whom the Lord of the place 
where you are going has given to be your guide in 
all the hard places which you may meet with in 
the way." 

Then he took him by the hand and led him into a 
very large parlour that was full of dust, because 
never swept. After he had looked at it for a 
while, Interpreter called for a man to sweep the 
floor. Now when he began to sweep the dust be- 
gan to fly about so much that Christian was almost 



54 The Wicket Gate and 

choked. Then said Interpreter to a girl that stood 
by, " Bring some water and sprinkle the room." 
When she had done as she was told it was easily 
swept and cleansed. 

Christian then said, " What means this ? " 

The Interpreter answered, " This parlour is the 
heart of a man that was never made holy by the 
sweet grace of the Gospel. The dust is his sins, 
which have made evil the whole man. He who be- 
gan to sweep at first is the Law, but she who did 
sprinkle it with water is the Gospel. You saw that 
as soon as the man began to sweep, the dust did so 
fly about that the room could not be swept by him. 
This tells you that the Law, instead of cleansing 
the heart from sin, only makes the sins increase and 
the heart worse. 1 

" Again, when you saw the girl sprinkle the room 
with water, it was easily swept. This is to show 
you that, when the Gospel comes in, bringing the 
sweet and good graces into the heart, sin is put 
down and swept out, and the soul made clean 
through faith of it. Then it becomes fit for the 
King of Glory to dwell in." 2 

The Interpreter then took Christian by the hand, 
and led him into another little room. Here sat two 
little children, each in his chair. The name of the 
eldest was Passion, and the name of the other was 
Patience. Passion looked very unhappy, but Pa- 
tience was very quiet. Then Christian asked what 

1 Rom. vii. 9 ; 1 Cor. xv. 56 ; Rom. v. 20. 
8 John xv. 3 ; Eph. v. 26 ; Acts xv. 9. 



The Interpreter's House 55 

was the reason why Passion was so unhappy. The 
Interpreter answered, " The Master would have him 
wait for his good things till the beginning of next 
year ; but he will have all now. Patience is will- 
ing to wait." Then some one came to Passion and 
brought him a bag of treasure, and poured it down 
at his feet. He at once took it up, and showed 
great delight in it, and laughed at Patience. But 
in a little while he wasted it all away, and had 
nothing left but rags. 

Then said Christian to the Interpreter, " Explain 
this thing more fully to me." 

The Interpreter: "These two lads are figures. 
Passion stands for the men of this world, and Pa- 
tience for the men of that which is to come. As 
you see, Passion will have all now this year ; that 
is to say, in this world. So are the men of this 
world. They must have all their good things now, 
and cannot wait for their share of good in the world 
to come. That proverb, ' A bird in the hand is 
worth two in the bush,' is of more value to them 
than all the divine promises of good in the next 
world. But you see how quickly he wasted all 
away, and soon had nothing left but rags. So it 
will be with all such men at the end of the world." 

Then said Christian, " Now I see that Patience 
is wiser, and for many reasons. First, because he 
waits for the best things ; second, because he will 
have the glory of his things, when Passion has noth- 
ing left but rags." 

The Interpreter : " Yes, and you may add an- 



56 The Wicket Gate and 

other reason: the glory of the next world will 
never wear out, but the things of this world are 
quickly lost. It was not wise for Passion to laugh 
at Patience, because he had his good things first. 
For Patience some day will laugh at Passion when 
he has his best things last. For first must make 
way for the last, because last must have his time 
also. But last makes room for no other, because 
no one can take its place.*' 

Christian then said, " I see that it is not best to 
desire things which are now, but to wait for the 
things which are to come." 

Interjpreter : " You say the truth, for the things 
which are seen are temporal, but the things which 
are not seen are eternal. " 1 

Exposition 
The Interpreter is the Holy Spirit, of whom 
Christ — who is Good- will — said that He would lead 
Christians into all the truth and explain the secrets 
of God's kingdom. The best way to understand 
the Interpreter is to think of one who is a helper 
or a friend in need, who comforts God's children. 
You will recall that the Interpreter led Christian 
from room to room and " took him by the hand." 
That tells how good and kind he is to help. One 

" Whose gentle voice we hear, 
Soft as the breath of even ; 
That checks each thought, and calms each fear, 
And speaks of heaven. " 

1 2 Cor. iv. 18. 



The Interpreter's House 57 

And when the Interpreter bade his man light a 
candle, before they enter the rooms, we are to think 
of the light of the Bible, that " candle unto our 
feet," and to bear in mind the old, wise saying, 
" Not the Spirit without the Word, not the Word 
without the Spirit." 

The first picture is that of a good minister of 
Jesus Christ. We see five great things about him. 
He loves heaven and Christ with all his heart. 
So he looks up to heaven, and grows like Christ. 
The Bible is in his hand, because it is the best 
food for the souls of men. He speaks the truth 
even if it is not liked by those who hear him, for 
truth is to him a " law." The world— that is, the 
evil world — was behind his back because he hated 
it. He did all he could to get others to believe 
on God, even as he did. 

The second picture tells us the value of the Gos- 
pel. It alone, like the girl in the picture, can ex- 
pel sin and make hearts clean. For this is a pic- 
ture of Christian's own heart, and the heart of 
every man who needs the dust swept out. He 
first knows that it is dusty ; that is to say, full of 
sin. Then he tries to sweep away the dust by 
the aid of God's law, but that only raises a dust, 
for the law shows us how far in sin we have 
gone. It was then that Christian tried the love 
and mercy of God, as found in the Gospel, and 
now his sins are taken away. 

The next picture shows us the meaning of two 
words, " time " and " eternity." Passion stands 



58 The Wicket Gate 

for time. Patience for eternity. Some people, 
like Passion, think, if they get all this world can 
give, they will have all they want. But by and 
by they find out their mistake. Patience is like 
those godly people whom Jesus has taught to set 
their desires upon things above, and to be con- 
tent till God gives His gift to them. All the 
world is like either Passion or Patience. Passion 
lives for himself alone, caring nothing about others. 
Patience will show love and kindness to all he 
knows. 

Questions 

What was the writing over the wicket gate ? 

What did Christian do when he came to the gate, 
and who opened it ? 

What did Good-will do when he let Christian in ? 

Whom did Good-will fear ? 

What did Good- will call Mr. Worldly Wiseman 
and Mr. Legality ? 

Are any not allowed to enter the wicket gate ? 

How was Christian to know the right way ? 

Could Good-will take off Christian's burden ? 

What house did Christian reach after he left 
Good-will ? 

What did he do when he reached the house, and 
who received him ? 

What was the first picture, and what was its 
meaning ? 

What did Christian see in a parlour ? 

What was the meaning of the picture ? 

What were the names of the two children in the 
third picture ? 

What is the meaning of the picture ? 



IV 

THE HOUSE OF THE INTERPRETER— MOEE 
PICTURES 

THE Interpreter took Christian and led him 
to a place where there was a fire burning 
against a wall and a man standing by it, 
always throwing water on it to put it out ; yet the 
fire burned higher and hotter. 

Then said Christian, " What does this mean ? " 

The Interpreter said, " This fire is the work of 
grace that God works in the heart. He who 
throws water on it to put it out is Satan. But in 
spite of all the water the fire burns hotter and 
higher. And you shall see why." 

So Christian was taken round to the other side 
of the wall, where he saw a man with a can of oil 
in his hand, and this oil he poured quietly all the 
time on the fire. 

" This," said Interpreter, " is Christ, who, with 
the oil of His grace, keeps up the work already be- 
gun in the heart. So we see that, no matter what 
Satan may do, the fire does not go out. And it is 
hard for one, when tempted, to know how this 
grace is kept up in the soul, because the man at the 
other side of the fire is not seen." 

59 



60 The House of the Interpreter 

The Interpreter took him again by the hand and 
led him into a pleasant place where stood a stately 
palace, lovely to look at, and when Christian saw 
it he was greatly pleased. He saw also, on the top 
of it, men walking about, who had on clothes all 
of gold. 

Then said Christian, " May we go in thither ? " 

Then the Interpreter took him and led him up 
towards the door of the palace ; and at the door of 
the palace stood a great number of men, all wish- 
ing to go in, but they were afraid. There also sat 
a man a little distance from the door, at a table-side, 
with a book and pen and ink before him, to take 
the name of him who should enter in. He saw, 
also, that in the doorway stood many men in armour. 
They were there to prevent any one getting in ; 
and if any one tried, they would hurt him all they 
could. 

Now Christian wondered very much at all this. 

At last, when all started back for fear of the 
armed men, Christian saw a very brave looking 
man come up to the man that sat there to write, 
saying, " Set down my name, sir." 

When this was done he saw the man draw his 
sword, and put a helmet on his head, and rush 
towards the door upon the armed men, who laid on 
him with deadly force. But the man, who did not 
mind at all, fell to cutting and slashing most 
fiercely. So, after he had given and received many 
wounds, he cut his way through them all and went 
into the palace. Then were heard pleasant voices, 






More Pictures 61 

and the men who walked upon the top of the 
palace said : 

" Come in ; come in ; 
Eternal glory thou shalt win." 

So he went in, and was clothed in most lovely 
garments. Then Christian smiled and said, " I am 
sure I know the meaning of this." 

" Now," said Christian, " let me be going on my 
journey." 

" No, not yet," said the Interpreter. " Wait till 
I have showed you a little more, and after that you 
shall go on your way." So he took him by the 
hand again, and led him into a very dark room, 
where sat a man in an iron cage. 

Now this man, as you looked at him, seemed 
very sad. He sat with his eyes looking down to 
the ground, his hands folded together, and he 
sighed as if his heart would break. 

Then said Christian, " What means this ? " 
To which the Interpreter said he might talk 
with the man. 

Then said Christian to the man, " Who are you ? " 
The man answered, " I am not what I once was." 
Christian : " What were you once ? " 
Man : " I was once a Christian, so far as ap- 
pearances went, 1 both in my own eyes and in the 
eyes of others. I once was, as I thought, going 
straight to the Celestial City, and had then joy at 
the thought of getting there." 
1 Luke viii. 13. 



62 The House of the Interpreter 

Christian : " Well, what are you now ? " 

Mam,: "I am now a man of despair, and am 
shut up in it, as in this iron cage. And I cannot 
get out. Oh, I cannot ! " 

Christian : " How did you come to this state ? " 

Man : "I did not keep a close watch on myself. 
I laid the reins on the neck of my desires. I sinned 
against the light of the Word and the goodness of 
God. I have grieved the Spirit and He is gone. I 
tempted the devil, and he is come to me. I have 
made God angry, and He has left me. I have such 
a hard heart I cannot repent." 

Then said Christian to the Interpreter : " But is 
there no hope for such a man as this ? " 

" Ask him," said the Interpreter. 

" Nay," said Christian, " you ask him." 

Interpreter : "Is there no hope ? Must you al- 
ways be kept in an iron cage ? " 

Man : " No ; no hope at all." 

Interpreter: "Why, the Son of God is very 
merciful." 

Man: "I have crucified Him to myself afresh. 1 
I have hated His person. 2 I have hated His good- 
ness. I have counted His blood an unholy thing. 
Therefore I have shut myself out of all the promises, 
and now there remains nothing for me but threat- 
enings — dreadful threatenings — fearful threatenings 
— of judgment that shall devour me at the last." 

" But why," said the Interpreter, " did you bring 
yourself into this state ? " 

1 Heb. vi. 6. 2 Luke xix. 14. 



More Pictures 63 

Man : " For the lusts, pleasures and profits of 
this world ; in the use of which I promised myself 
very much delight. And now every one of these 
things also bites me, and gnaws like a burning 
worm." 

Then said the Interpreter to Christian, " Do not 
forget this man's misery, and let it always be a 
warning to you." 

Christian : " Well, this is fearful. God help me 
to watch and be sober, and to pray that I may shun 
the cause of this man's misery. Sir, is it not time 
for me to go on my way ? " 

Interpreter : " Wait till I show you one thing 
more. Then you shall go on your way." 

So he took Christian by the hand again and led 
him into a room, where a man was rising out of 
bed ; and as he put on his clothes he shook and 
trembled. 

Then said Christian, " Why does this man trem- 
ble ? " 

The Interpreter bade the man tell Christian why 
he shook so much. 

So he began and said : " This night, as I was in 
my sleep, I dreamed, and lo ! the heavens became 
very black ; also there was very much thunder and 
lightning, and it put me in great fear. So I looked 
up in my dream and saw the clouds fly very fast, 
and heard the sound of a trumpet, and also saw a 
man sit upon a cloud, with the thousands of heaven 
beside him. They were all flaming fire ; also the 
clouds were a burning flame. And I heard a voice 



64 The House of the Interpreter 

say, ' Arise, ye dead, and come to judgment.' And 
with that the rocks split, the graves opened, and 
the dead that were there came forth. Some were 
very glad and looked upward, and some tried to 
hide themselves under the hills. Then I saw the 
man that sat upon the cloud open the book and bid 
the world draw near. I heard it also said to those 
who were beside the man that sat on the cloud, 
' Gather together the tares, the chaff, the stubble, 
and cast them into the burning lake.' ' And with 
that the bottomless pit opened, near to where I 
stood, out of the mouth of which came smoke, and 
coals of fire, and fearful sounds. The man said 
again to those who surrounded him, ' Gather my 
wheat into the garner.' 2 And then I saw many 
caught up and carried away into the clouds, but I 
was left behind. 3 I tried to hide myself, but could 
not, for the man that sat upon the cloud found me 
out, and kept his eye on me. My sins also came 
up into my mind, and my conscience accused me on 
every side. 4 Then I woke out of my sleep." 

Christian : " But what made you so afraid of 
this sight ? " 

Man: "Why, I thought the day of judgment 
was come, and that I was not ready for it. But 
what made me most afraid was that the angels 
gathered up others and left me behind. Also the 
pit opened just where I stood." 

1 Matt. iii. 12 ; xiii. 30 ; xxiv. 30 ; Mai. iv. 1. 
9 Luke iii. 17. 3 1 Thess. iv. 16, 17. 

4 Rom. ii. 14, 15. 



More Pictures 65 

Then said the Interpreter to Christian, " Have 
you thought on all these things ? " 

Christian : " Yes, and they put me in hope and 
fear." 

Interpreter: "Keep all these things in your 
mind, that they may urge you forward in the way 
you must go." 

Then Christian began to make ready for his 
journey. As he set out the Interpreter said, " The 
Comforter be always with you, good Christian, to 
guide you in the way that leads to the city." 

Exposition 

The first picture at the head of this chapter 
shows us a fire burning beside a wall. You will 
see from it that Christ can give grace to keep burn- 
ing the love of God in our hearts. Sometimes we 
wonder if our love to God will last. "We see the 
open foe, Satan, putting on water, and the hidden 
champion, Christ, pouring on oil. "My grace is 
sufficient for thee." So He who kindles the fire of 
love can surely keep it burning. 

The next picture tells us of the secret of final 
victory. Life is a battle, and we must fight if we 
would win. The timid men who crowd about the 
doorway will never reach the top of the palace and 
be clothed with golden garments. Once we put 
down our names we must take up our arms, and 
fight every inch of the way. The enemies must all 
be cut down, one by one. There is no gliding into 
heaven. Christ gives us the armour, and the ene- 



66 The House of the Interpreter 

mies of our souls are sure to be overcome if we use 
the sword of the Spirit. " Fight the good fight of 
faith." We must never be cowards, but be brave 
for the truth and for God. 

" Stand up, stand up for Jesus, 
Ye soldiers of the cross." 

The picture of the man in the iron cage is a 
terrible one. Let us so live that we shall never be 
in fear of such an end. The danger is that we 
should pretend to be good when we are not, and 
then afterwards give up all trying, and become 
more sinful than ever. We are to be sure we really 
trust Christ, and then to watch. "I left off to 
watch," said the man in the cage. That was the 
beginning. He went down, down into the mud 
of sin after that, and found himself in the cage of 
despair. 

" Hear above all, hear thy Lord ; 
Watch and pray." 

The last picture tells us that there is a final judg- 
ment, and we are to be ready for it. We need not 
fear even it if we love and trust Christ. For He 
loves us far more than we can ever love Him. 

Questions 

Who poured water on the fire the Interpreter 
showed Christian, and who poured on oil ? 
Was the fire put out ? 
What happened at the door of the palace ? 



More Pictures 67 

Were there many entering the palace ? 

What was said when the man fought his way in ? 

What did Christian see in an iron cage ? 

How did the man come to be in the cage ? 

What made the next man Christian saw tremble ? 

What did the man see, and what did he hear ? 

What happened to the tares and chaff, and what 
happened to the wheat ? 

What did the Interpreter say when Christian 
left him ? 



THE CEOSS AND THE HILL DIFFICULTY 

NOW there was on every side of the way 
up which Christian was now going a 
wall, and that wall was called Salvation. 1 
Up this way then Christian ran, but with great ef- 
fort, because of the load on his back. He ran till 
he came to a little hill, and upon it stood a cross, 
and a little below, in the hollow, an open grave. 
Just as Christian came up to the cross his burden 
fell off his shoulders, and began to roll down the 
slope till it came to the open grave, where it fell in 
aud was seen no more. Then Christian was glad, 
and said with a joyful heart, " He hath given me 
rest by his sorrow, and life by his death." Then 
he stood a while to look and wonder, for it was 
very wonderful to him that the sight of the cross 
should thus loose his load off his back. He looked, 
and looked again, till the tears came into his eyes. 2 
Now, as he stood looking and weeping, three 
shining ones came to him and said, " Peace be to 
thee." So the first said, " Thy sins be forgiven 
thee." 3 The second took off his rags from him and 
put on new garments. 4 The third also set a mark 

1 Isa. xxvi. 1. 2 Zech. xii. 10. 

3 Mark ii. 5. 4 Zech. iii. 4. 

68 




CLIMBING THE HILL DIFFICULTY 
He fell from running to going, and from going to clambering upon 
his hands and his knees, because of the steepness of the place. 



And the Hill Difficulty 69 

on his forehead, 1 and gave him a roll with a seal on 
it. This roll he told him to read as he went on his 
journey, and to give it up at last when he reached 
the gate of the city. 

Then Christian gave three leaps for joy, and went 
on singing : 

" Thus far did I come laden with my sin, 
Nor could ought ease the grief that I was in, 
Till I came hither. What a place is this ! 
Must here be the beginning of my bliss ? 

" Must here the burden fall from off my back t 
Must here the strings that bind it to me crack f 
Blest cross ! blest sepulchre ! blest rather be, 
The Man that there was put to shame for me ! " 

Exposition 

When truly converted persons come to know 
what a sight of the cross teaches they always feel 
like Hopeful, who said : " Had I now a thousand 
gallons of blood in my body, I could pour it all out 
for the sake of the Lord Jesus." 

David Brainerd, with his half -dead hand, wrote 
in the last page of his diary : " How sweeHtjsjto 
love God, and have a heart all for God." 

When Bunyan saw the cross and all it means for 
the first time, the relief that came to him was so 
great and his joy so full that he says he " could 
have spoken of it to the very crows that sat upon 
the plowed lands by the wayside." 

The right way to come to the cross is along the 

1 Eph. i. 13. 



70 The Cross 

path of Salvation. If we come by any other path 
we may never get the blessing we seek. The right 
spirit to show when coming to the cross is one of 
sorrow for our sins, and a great desire to have them 
taken away. 

" Bearing shame and scoffing rude, 
In my place condemned He stood, 
Sealed my pardon with His blood, 
Hallelujah ! » 

" All we, like sheep, have gone astray ; we have 
turned every one to his own way, and the Lord 
hath laid on Him the iniquity of us all." Millions 
of men and women in all ages have found all their 
heart's need at the cross of Jesus. Men like Bishop 
Butler, the poet Cowper, a great German preacher, 
and very, very many others put aside all their good 
works and learning at last, and trusted the cross of 
Christ to bring them peace with God. 

The three shining ones at the cross give Chris- 
tian much joy. One of them gives him peace and 
pardon, for he says, " Thy sins be forgiven thee." 
These three are the three Persons of the Trinity. 
He who brings peace is our heavenly Father, and 
we come into His arms like the Prodigal Son of 
old. The second stripped him of his rags and 
clothed him with new garments. This is Christ the 
Saviour, who takes away all the signs of evil, and 
makes us appear good in the sight of God. The 
third angel gave him a roll with a seal on it, and 
put a mark on his forehead. This is the Holy 



And the Hill Difficulty 7 1 

Spirit, who teaches us to know that we have be- 
come children of God. The roll He gives is the in- 
ward and heartfelt rest from all fear that we shall 
not see heaven. It is a text of the Bible, such as, 
" The Lord knoweth them that are His," which we 
learn and love and think about in secret, because 
we know it is so true, and is such a comfort when 
we are in trial or trouble. 

Christian Continues His Journey 

Then Christian went on his way, until he came to 
a hollow, where he saw, a little out of the way, 
three men fast asleep, with chains on their feet. 
The name of the one was Simple, another Sloth, 
and the third Presumption. Christian, seeing them 
lie in this case, went to them so that he might wake 
them, and cried, " You are like men that sleep on 
the top of a mast, 1 for the dead sea is under you— 
a gulf that hath no bottom. Wake up and come 
away. If you will let me, I will help you off with 
your chains." He also told them : " If he that goes 
about like a roaring lion 2 passes this way, you are 
sure to be killed." 

But Simple said, " I see no danger " ; Sloth said, 
" Yet a little more sleep " ; and Presumption said, 
" Every man must take care of himself." And so 
they lay down to sleep again, and Christian went 
on his way. 

Now there were two other men also going the 
same way as Christian, whose names were Formalist 

1 Prov. xxiii. 34. * 1 Peter v. 8. 



72 The Cross 

and Hypocrisy. These two came tumbling over 
the wall, on the left hand of the narrow way, and, 
hurrying on, soon came up to Christian. 

Christian said, " Gentlemen, where did you come 
from and where are you going ? " 

Formalist and Hypocrisy replied, " We were born 
in the land of Vain Glory, and are going for praise 
to Mount Zion." 

Christian : " Why came you not in at the gate 
which is at the beginning of the way ? Do you not 
know that it is written that ' he that cometh not in 
by the door, but climbeth up some other way, the 
same is a thief and a robber ' ? " ' 

Formalist and Hypocrisy answered, " To go to the 
gate in order to get in was by all their friends 
counted too far round about. It was their usual 
way to make a short cut of it and climb over the 
wall." 

Christian : " But will it not be counted a wrong 
act by the Lord of the city where we are going ? " 

Formalist and Hypocrisy replied that Christian 
need not trouble his head about that, for they were 
only doing what others had done for more than one 
thousand years. 

Christian pointed out to Formalist and Hypocrisy 
that they must go in by the door. He told them 
that the Lord of the city would know him, because 
he had the coat of his Lord on his back, a coat 
which his Lord had given him the day he stripped 
him of his rags. He also had his mark on his fore- 

1 John x. 1. 



And the Hill Difficulty 73 

head, and carried a roll which had been given him 
as a comfort on his journey, and which he was to 
hand in at the gate of the city. 

To these things they gave him no reply, only 
they looked at one another and laughed. Soon, as 
they all went on, they came to the foot of the hill 
Difficulty, at the bottom of which there was a 
spring. There was also in the same place two 
other ways besides that which came straight from 
the gate ; one turned to the left hand, and the other 
to the right, at the bottom of the hill. But the 
narrow way led right up the hill. Christian now 
went to the spring 1 and drank deeply to refresh 
himself, and then began to go up the hill. The 
other two came to the foot of the hill, and when 
they saw it was steep and high, and there were two 
other ways to go, which were not nearly so steep, 
they tried these ways. The name of one of them 
was Danger and the other Destruction. So one 
went one way and the other chose the other way, 
and both lost their lives. 

Christian at first began to run up the hill, then 
he had to walk, and soon he had to go on his hands 
and knees because of the steepness of the way. 

Now, about half-way to the top of the hill was a 
pleasant arbour, made by the Lord of the hill as a 
resting place for weary travellers. When Christian 
reached this arbour he lay down to rest. Then he 
pulled his roll out of his bosom, and read it to 
cheer him. Also he had another good look at the 
1 Isa. xlix. 10. 



74 The Cross 

coat that had been given him. He lay thus, and 
at last fell asleep. He slept until it was almost 
night, and in his sleep his roll fell out of his hand. 

Now, as he was sleeping, some one came to him 
and waked him, saying, " Go to the ant, thou 
sluggard ; consider her ways and be wise." 1 

Then Christian suddenly started up and hurried 
on his way, and went as quickly as he could till he 
came to the top of the hill. When he reached the 
top of the hill two men came running to meet him. 
One was called Timorous and the other Mistrust, 
to whom Christian said, " Sirs, what is the matter ? 
You run the wrong way." 

Timorous answered that they were going to the 
city of Zion and had got up that difficult place ; 
"but," he said, "the farther we go the more 
danger we meet, so we turned about and are 
going back again." 

"Yes," said Mistrust, "for just in front of us 
there are two lions in the way. We do not know 
if they are asleep or awake, but we are sure that if 
we came within their reach they would pull us to 
pieces." 

Then said Christian : " You make me afraid ; but 
where shall I fly to be safe ? If I go back to my 
country I shall die there. If I can get to the 
Celestial City I am sure to be safe there. I must 
go on. To go back is nothing but death ; to go 
on is fear of death, and life eternal beyond. I 
will yet go forward." 

^rov. vi. 6. 



And the Hill Difficulty 75 

So Timorous and Mistrust ran down the hill, but 
Christian went on his way. But thinking again of 
what the men said, he felt for his roll, that he 
might read it and find comfort. But he found it 
not and was in great trouble. He greatly needed 
his roll, for it had given him comfort, and was to 
be his pass into the Celestial City. At last he re- 
membered that he had slept in the arbour that was 
on the side of the hill, and, falling down on his 
knees, he asked God's forgiveness for his foolish 
act, and then went back to find the roll. 

But who can tell of his sorrow as he went all the 
way back, looking here and there and everywhere 
in search of his roll, which had been such a com- 
fort to him. Sometimes he sighed, sometimes he 
wept, and often he scolded himself for being so 
foolish as to fall asleep in that place, which was put 
there only to give a little rest to tired travellers. 

"Oh, unhappy man that I am, that I should 
sleep in the daytime ! How many steps have I 
taken in vain ! How far I might have been on my 
way by this time, and now night is coming on, for 
the day is almost gone." 

Now by this time he was come to the arbour 
again, where he sat down and wept. But at last, 
looking sadly under the seat, there he saw his roll. 
Trembling with haste, he took it up and hid it in 
his bosom. But who can tell how happy he was 
when he started anew, and with tears and joy went 
on his journey again ? 

Oh, how swiftly he went up the hill now ! Yet 



76 The Cross 

before he got to the top the sun went down, and he re- 
called the story of Timorous and Mistrust, how they 
had fled with fear at the sight of the lions. Then 
said Christian to himself again, " These beasts roam 
in the night for their prey ; and if they should look 
for me in the dark, how shall I escape them and 
not be torn in pieces ? " But as he thought of 
these things he looked up and saw before him a 
very grand palace, the name of which was Beauti- 
ful, and it stood just by the side of the way. 

Exposition 

The first three men Christian meets after he 
leaves the cross are fast asleep. They belong to 
the great number who do not care what becomes of 
their souls. Such men think they are safe, and can 
do what they like and not come to any harm. 
These three did not see the chains on their feet, 
because they were put on while they were asleep. 
So they were in great danger, but did not know it. 
Simple said, "I see no danger " ; Sloth said, " Yet 
a little more sleep," and Presumption said, " Every 
tub must stand on its own bottom." So they lay 
down to sleep again. Many years after, when 
Christiana and her friends reached this place, these 
same men were hanged up in chains a little way 
off on the other side. So they lost their lives by 
going to sleep, a little out of the way. 

Formalist and Hypocrisy were men who wanted 
people to believe they were Christians, when they 
were not. They came tumbling over the wall 



And the Hill Difficulty 77 

rather than go around by the gate to the narrow 
way because they wanted a short cut to heaven. 
There are no short cuts to heaven. We must all 
come into the narrow way by the wicket gate. 
When they came to the hill and saw a steep path 
and two easy roads, they took the easy ways. But 
the easy way is not always the safe way. The 
only safe road is the right one. By taking the easy 
way each lost his life, and that was not so pleasant 
after all. 

The hill difficulty lies on the path of every 
Christian life. No matter how hard to climb, 
every Christian can reach the top by the help of 
God. All difficulties are best overcome on our 
knees in prayer before God. God put a spring at 
the bottom of the hill, and an arbour half-way up. 
The spring of water tells us we can get help from 
God at the start of a big effort, and the arbour shows 
how God gives rest to His children when they re- 
quire it most. 

Questions 

Why did Christian find it difficult to run ? 
What did he see on a hill ? 
What was at the bottom of the hill ? 
What took place when Christian came to the 
cross ? 

Was the load that fell off his back seen again ? 

Who came to him ? 

What did the first shining one say ? 

What did the second shining one do ? 

What did the third shining one do ? 



78 The Cross 

What men did Christian see at the bottom of the 
hill on which the cross stood ? 

What did he say to them, and what did each 
reply ? 

What two men did Christian next meet ? 

What hill did they reach, and was it steep ? 

Did the two men go up it ? 

What did Christian do in the arbour ? 

Whom did he meet at the top of the hill ? 

What did they tell him, and what did Christian 
say? 

What did Christian lose, and where did he find 
it again ? 

What did he do when he found it ? 



VI 
THE PALACE BEAUTIFUL 

NOW Christian made haste and went on, so 
that he might stay for the night in the 
Beautiful Palace. Before he had gone 
far he came to a very narrow passage, which was 
some way off from the porter's door. Looking very 
carefully before him as he went, he saw two lions 
in the way. " Now," thought he, " I see the dan- 
gers that Mistrust and Timorous were driven back 
by." (The lions were chained, but he did not see 
the chains.) Then he was afraid, and thought he 
had better go back after them. But the porter of 
the door, whose name was Watchful, seeing that 
Christian had stopped as if he would go back, cried 
to him, " Is your strength so small ? x Do not fear 
the lions, for they are chained, and are placed there 
to test the faith of those who have any faith, and to 
find out those who have none. Keep in the middle 
of the path, and they shall do you no harm." 

Then I saw that he went on, trembling for fear 
of the lions, but he took good care to do as the 
porter had told him, and, although he heard them 
roar, they did him no harm. 

Then he clapped his hands and went on till he 
came to the gate where the porter was. Then said 

1 Mark xiii. 34, 37. 
79 



80 The Palace Beautiful 

Christian to the porter, " Sir, what house is this ? 
And may I sleep here to-night ? " 

The porter said, " This house was built by the 
Lord of the Hill, and he built it for the comfort 
and safety of pilgrims." 

The porter also asked where he came from and 
where he was going. 

Christian: "I am come from the City of De- 
struction, and am going to Mount Zion ; but be- 
cause the sun is now set, I wish, if I may, to sleep 
here to-night." 

Porter : " How does it happen that you came so 
late ? The sun is set." 

Christian : " I should have been here sooner, but 
' wretched man that I am ! ' I slept in the arbour 
that stands on the hillside. Even then I should 
have been here much sooner, but in my sleep I lost 
my roll, and came without it to the top of the hill ; 
and then, feeling for it and not finding it, I had 
with much sorrow of heart to go back to the place 
where I had slept." 

Porter : " Well, I will call out one of the maid- 
ens of this house, who will, if she likes your talk, 
bring you to the rest of the family, according to 
the rules of the house." 

So Watchful, the porter, rang a bell, at the sound 
of which came out at the door of the house a grave 
and beautiful girl, named Discretion, and asked 
why she was called. 

The porter said, " This man is on a journey from 
the City of Destruction to Mount Zion, but being 



The Palace Beautiful 81 

weary and the night coming on, he asked me if he 
might stay here to-night. So I told him I would 
call for you, who, after you had talked with him, 
would do what is right, according to the rules of 
this house." 

Then she asked him where he came from, and 
where he was going, and he told her. She asked 
him also how he got into the way and he told her. 
Then she asked what he had seen and met with in 
the way ; also she asked him his name. He told 
her his name was Christian, and added, " I greatly 
desire to stay here to-night, because I notice that 
this place was built by the Lord of the Hill for the 
comfort and safety of pilgrims." 

So she smiled, but the tears stood in her eyes, 
and after a pause she said, " I will call two or 
three more of the family." 

She ran to the door and called out Prudence, 
Piety and Charity, who, after they had talked with 
him, took him in to the family. 

Many of them met him at the door and said, 
" Come in, thou blessed of the Lord. This house 
was built by the Lord of the Hill for the comfort of 
such pilgrims." 

Then he bowed his head and went with them into 
the house. So when he came in and sat down, they 
gave him something to drink, and talked together 
till supper was ready. Piety, Prudence and Charity 
each spoke to him in turn, and thus they began : 

Piety : " What made you at first go on the pil- 
grim's journey ? " 



82 The Palace Beautiful 

Christian : "I was driven out of my native 
country because I knew if I stayed there I should 
be killed when it is burnt up. And when I did 
not know what to do, there came a man to me, 
even as I was trembling and weeping, whose name 
is Evangelist, who showed me the wicket gate, 
and so set me in the way that leads to this house." 

Piety : " But did you not come to the house of 
the Interpreter ? " 

Christian : " Yes, and saw such things there as 
I shall never forget. How Christ, in spite of Satan, 
keeps the fire burning in the heart ; how a man 
had sinned himself out of the hope of God's mercy ; 
and the dream of him that thought in his sleep that 
the day of judgment had come. Also he showed 
me a lovely palace, and how the people in it were 
clad with gold, and how a brave man cut his way 
in through the armed men that stood at the door to 
keep him out, and how he was bidden to come in 
and win eternal glory." 

Piety: "And what else did you see in the 
way ? " 

Christian : " Why, I went but a little farther, 
and I saw one (as I thought in my mind) hang 
bleeding on a tree, and the very sight of him made 
my burden fall off my back. And while I stood 
looking, three Shining Ones came to me and said, 
* Peace be to thee.' " 

Then Prudence asked him some questions, saying, 
" Do you ever think of the country you left behind ?" 

Christian : " Yes, with much shame and sorrow. 



The Palace Beautiful 83 

But now I desire a better country; that is, a 
heavenly." ' 

Prudence: " Are you ever troubled with thoughts 
of things you want to forget ? " 

Christian : " Yes, but greatly against my will." 

Prudence : " Do you ever find yourself able to 
forget such things ? " 

Christian : " Yes, though not often. But they 
are to me golden hours when it so happens. When 
I think I see the cross, that will do it ; and when 
I look upon my coat, that will do it ; and when I 
look upon my roll that I carry in my bosom, that 
will do it ; and when my thoughts grow warm 
about where I am going, that will do it." 

Prudence : " And what makes you so glad to go 
to Mount Zion ? " 

Christian : " Why, I hope to see him alive that 
did hang on the cross, and I hope there to be rid 
of all those things that to this day trouble me, and 
I shall live with such friends as I like best. For, 
to tell you the truth, I love him, because I was by 
him eased of my burden. I would fain be where I 
shall die no more, and with those who cry, * Holy ! 
Holy ! Holy ! ' » 

Then said Charity to Christian, "Have you a 
family ? " 

Christian : " Yes, I have a wife and four small 
children." 

Charity : " And why did you not bring them 
along with you ? " 

1 Heb. xi. 15, 16. 



84 The Palace Beautiful 

Then Christian wept, and said, " Oh, how gladly 
would I have done it. But they were not willing 
to go with me, and, although I talked with them, 
and told them about the destruction of our city, 
they would not believe me. 1 Then I prayed to 
God for them, and told them of my own sorrow, 
which indeed they easily saw in my face, and my 
fears of judgment, yet they would not come." 

Charity : " But did they say why they would 
not come ? " 

Christian : " Why, my wife was afraid of losing 
this world, and my children were too fond of the 
foolish pleasures of youth, so they left me to 
journey in this way alone." 

Now while they thus sat talking supper was 
made ready, and they sat down to eat. And all 
their talk at the table was about the Lord of the 
Hill, and all he had done to enable poor pilgrims 
to journey safely to Mount Zion. They talked till 
late that night, and after they had asked their Lord 
to protect them during the night they went to rest. 
To the pilgrim they gave a large upper chamber, 
whose window opened towards the rising of the 
sun. The name of the room was Peace, and there 
he slept till the break of day. Then he awoke 
and sang : 

" Where am I now? Is this the love and care 
Of Jesus for the men that pilgrims are f 
Thus to provide ! that I should be forgiven 
And dwell already the next door to heaven ? n 

1 Gen. xix. 14. 



The Palace Beautiful 85 

Then they told him he was not to go till they had 
shown him the wonders of the palace. And first 
they led him into the study, where they showed him 
many records of very great age, which told him of 
what great things the Lord of the Hill had done. 

Then they read to him of the grand acts that 
some of his servants had done : how they had won 
kingdoms, closed the mouths of lions, put out flam- 
ing fires, escaped being put to death by the sword, 
out of weakness had been made strong, how brave 
they had been in fighting, and how they had put to 
flight the armies that had come up against them. 1 

Then they read again, in another part of the 
records of the house, of how willing their Lord 
was to receive all into his service, even though they 
had in the past fought against him and his work. 
They read him, too, the story of many other 
famous things, all of which Christian had a view, 
both new and old, and of things that were sure to 
happen, which will cause dread to the enemies of 
the Lord and give comfort to pilgrims. The next 
day they took him into the armoury, where they 
showed him all kinds of arms which the Lord had 
for the use of pilgrims, such as sword, shield, hel- 
met, breastplate, all-prayer, and shoes that would 
not wear out. And there were enough of these to 
arm as many men for the service of their Lord as 
there be stars in heaven for number. 

They also showed him some of the things with 
which his servants had done wonderful deeds. 

1 Heb. xi. 33, 34. 



86 The Palace Beautiful 

They showed him the rod of Moses ; the harartier 
and nail with which Jael slew Sisera ; the lamps, 
trumpets and bowls with which Gideon pub to 
flight the armies of Midian. Then they showed 
him the ox's goad of Shaingar, the jaw-bone with 
which Samson did such mighty feats, the sling and 
stone of David with which he slew Goliath of 
Gath, and the sword also with which their Lord 
will slay the Man of Sin in that great clay. 

In the morning he got up to go forward, but 
they desired him to stay till the next day also, and 
then, said they, we will, if the day be clear, show 
you the Delectable Mountains. So Christian 
stayed, and when the morning came they led him 
to the top of the house, and bade him look south. 
So he did, and lo ! he saw a most pleasant country, 
with hills, lovely with woods, vineyards, fruits of 
all sorts, flowers, and springs and fountains, very 
beautiful to behold. 1 

Then Christian asked the name of that country, 
and they told him it was Immanuel's Land, and, 
like the hill on which the Palace Beautiful stood, 
it was open for all pilgrims. " And when you 
come there," they said, " you may catch sight of 
the gate of the city, as the shepherds that live there 
will show you." 

Now Christian wanted to go on, and they were 
willing that he should. 

" But first," said they, " let us go again into the 
armoury." 

1 Isa. xxxiii. 16, 17. 



The Palace Beautiful 87 

So they did, and when they eame there they 
armed him from head to foot, so that he might 
ward off all attacks in the way. Then they walked 
with him to the gate, where he asked the porter if 
he saw any pilgrims pass by. 

The porter replied, " Yes." 

" What was his name ? " asked Christian. 

" He told me it was Faithful," said the porter. 

" Oh," said Christian, " I know him. He is from 
my city, the place where I was born. How far do 
you think he may be in front ? " 

" He has got by this time below the hill," said 
the porter. 

" Well," said Christian, " good porter, the Lord 
be with you and bless you for all your kindness to 

me." 

Discretion, Piety and Prudence went with him 
down to the foot of the hill, talking all the time 
about their Lord. They also told him to look well 
to his steps. 

Then said Christian, " It was hard to go up the 
hill, and as far as I can see it is just as hard to go 
down again." 

" Yes," said Prudence, " it is very hard for a man 
to go down into the Valley of Humiliation, as you 
are doing now, and not slip by the way. That is 
why we are coming with you." So he went down 
with all care, yet made a slip or two. 

Then these good friends gave Christian a loaf of 
bread, a bottle of wine, and a cluster of grapes ; 
and he went on his way. 






88 The Palace Beautiful 

Exposition 

The Palace Beautiful is a picture of the Church 
of Christ. There were lions in the path, and it takes 
courage to pass them on the way to the door of the 
palace. So, often, there are great dangers to be 
faced when joining the church. Our friends in 
Eussia and Bohemia and other lands could tell us 
much about that. The pilgrim faced the lions be- 
cause he had faith to do and dare. When we 
throw in our lot with God's people we must have 
faith in God. Some day, probably, our young 
readers will join the Church of Christ. But that 
must come after the wicket gate and the cross, not 
before. To come into the church before passing 
through the wicket gate and standing before the 
cross of Jesus is a most fearful mistake. The pil- 
grim made good friends, among the best he ever 
had, when he came to the Palace Beautiful. All 
our best friends should be found inside the Church 
of God. The supper table at the Palace Beautiful 
stands for the Lord's supper, for " all their talk at 
the table was about the Lord of the Hill." 

In the study the records were read, a sweet way 
of telling us to study our Bible, which is the record 
here spoken of. What a wonderful book — old, yet 
ever new ! The Bible is the armoury also. It is 
here that Moses's rod, Jael's hammer, etc., are 
stored up as proofs of God's power to use such 
strange means to save His people. " Not by 
might, nor by power, but by My Spirit, saith the 
Lord of Hosts." 



The Palace Beautiful 89 

Christian saw afar off, on a clear day, Immanuel's 
Land. That is the pilgrim's hope. It is a hope 
that does not make us ashamed. It is a hope of 
glory. We are always to keep that hope in view, 
and by and by, when we are farther on in our 
journey, that hope will become more real, more de- 
lightful, even as it did to Christian. 

Christian departs from the palace clothed in 
armour from head to foot. Everything is given 
him by the virgins that he requires to resist evil 
and overcome the world. So Christ can give us all 
we need to shun evil, to win battles against Satan, 
and fight the good fight— the Bible, prayer and 
" the whole armour of God." 



Questions 

What was the name of the palace Christian saw 
at the top of the hill ? 

What made him afraid to go on ? 

Why did the lions not touch him ? 

Who spoke to him at the gate ? 

To whom did he talk about himself ? 

What was the name of the room in which he 
slept ? 

What did Prudence, Piety and Charity show him 
in the morning ? 

What mountains did Christian see afar off ? 

How did they prepare him for his journey ? 

Who went with him to the foot of the hill ? 

What was the name of the valley he came to ? 

What food did they give him for his journey ? 



VII 

THE FIGHT WITH APOLLYON 

NOW in this Valley of Humiliation poor 
Christian was hard put to it, for he had 
gone only a little way when he saw the 
foul fiend, whose name is Apollyon, coming over 
the field to meet him. Then Christian began to be 
afraid, and to wonder whether he should go back 
or stand his ground. But he remembered that he 
had no armour for his back, and he dare not turn 
around, for fear he would be wounded in the back 
by the darts of the Wicked One. So he made up 
his mind to stand his ground. Then he went on 
and Apollyon met him. Now the monster was 
awful to see ; he had scales like a fish — of which 
he is very proud ; he had wings like a dragon, feet 
like a bear, and out of him came fire and smoke, 
and his mouth was the mouth of a lion. When he 
came up to Christian he looked at him with scorn 
and began to ask him questions. 

Apollyon: "Where did you come from and 
whither are you going ? " 

Christian : " I am come from the City of De- 
struction, which is the place of all evil, and am 
going to the City of Zion." 

Apollyon : " By this I know you are one of my 
people, for all that country is mine, and I am the 

90 



The Fight With Apollyon 91 

prince and god of it. How is it, then, that you 
have run away from your king ? If I did not hope 
that you would still serve me I would strike you 
with one blow to the ground." 

Christian : " I was indeed born in your country, 
but your service was hard, and what you pay a man 
cannot live on, for ' the wages of sin is death.' l So 
when I grew older I did what others have done, 
and tried to help myself." 

Apollyon : " There is no prince that will gladly 
lose his subjects, so I will not as yet lose you ; but 
since you are not content with your wages, go back, 
and what our country can give I now promise you 
shall have." 

Christian: "But I have now joined myself to 
another person, even the King of princes, and how 
can I go back to you ? " 

Apollyon: "You have done in this a foolish 
thing. You have changed 'a bad for a worse.' 
But it is quite usual for those who become his, after 
a while, to give him the slip and return again to 
me. All shall be well, if you do so." 

Christian: "I have given him my faith, and 
sworn to be true. How, then, can I change and 
not be hanged as a traitor ? " 

Apollyon : " You did the same to me, and yet I 
am willing to forget it if you will return again to 
me." 

Christian : " What I did then I was too young to 
know what I was doing. Besides, the prince under 

1 Rom. vi. 23. 



92 The Fight With Apollyon 

whose banner I now serve is able to make it all 
right, and also to pardon what I did when I obeyed 
you. Moreover, O thou wicked Apollyon, to tell 
the truth, I like his service, his wages, his serv- 
ants, his country and company, better than yours. 
So do not try to persuade me. I am his servant, 
and will follow him." 

Apollyon: "Think, then, calmly of what you 
are going to meet in the way you are going. You 
know that most of his servants come to a sad end, 
because they oppose me and my ways. How many 
of them have died awful deaths ! He never came 
from the place where he is to save them from their 
foes ; but, as for me, how often, as all the world 
knows, have I, either by power or fraud, saved those 
who serve me from him and his, and so will I save 
you also." 

Christian: "His delay to save his own is on 
purpose to try their love, to see if they will cling to 
him to the end. And as for the sad end you say 
they come to, it is a most happy one, for they wait 
for their glory, which they shall have when their 
prince comes in his glory and the glory of the 
angels." 

Apollyon: "You have already been untrue to 
him, and do you really expect to receive wages 
from him ? " 

Christian : " How have I failed ? " 

Apollyon : " You fainted when you first started 
out. Then you were almost choked in the Slough 
of Despond. You tried in wrong ways to get rid of 



The Fight With Apollyon 93 

your burden. You slept and lost your roll. You 
were very nearly turned back at the sight of the 
lions. And when you talk of your journey and 
what you have seen, you are very fond of praise 
and wish to get it." 

Christian : " All that you say is true, and much 
more that you have left out. But the prince whom 
I serve is kind and good and ready to forgive. And 
besides, all these sins were mine when I lived in 
your country, for there I learned them and was in 
pain through them, and now have got pardon from 
my prince." 

Then Apollyon broke into an awful rage, saying, 
" I am an enemy of this prince. I hate him, his 
laws and people. I have come to fight against you." 

Christian: "Beware, Apollyon, what you do, 
for I am on the King's road, the holy way, so be- 
have yourself." Then Apollyon spread himself 
right over the whole breadth of the way, and said, 
" I am void of fear in this matter. Prepare thy- 
self to die, for I swear by my infernal den that thou 
shalt go no farther. Here will I spill thy soul." 

And with that he threw a flaming dart at Chris- 
tian's breast, but Christian had a shield in his hand, 
with which he caught it, and so saved himself. 
Then Christian drew his sword, for he saw it was 
time to act quickly. And Apollyon made as fast 
at him, throwing darts as thick as hail. In spite 
of all Christian could do he was wounded in his 
head, his hand and his foot. This made Christian 
fall back a little. Apollyon, seeing this, followed 



94 The Fight With Apollyon 

him and pressed him hard; but Christian again 
took courage and fought with all his might. This 
awful fight lasted for more than half a day. Chris- 
tian was worn out, because his wounds made him 
grow weaker and weaker. Then Apollyon, seeing 
this, began to come up close to Christian, and, 
wrestling with him, gave him a great fall. And 
with that Christian's sword fell to the ground. 

Then said Apollyon, "I am sure of you now." 
And with that he almost crushed him to death, so 
that Christian was sure his last hour had come. 
But when Apollyon was just going to give Chris- 
tian a blow which would have killed him, Christian 
put out his hand for his sword and caught it, say- 
ing, " Kejoice not against me, O mine enemy ; when 
I fall I shall arise." ' And with these words he 
gave Apollyon a deadly cut, which made him fall 
back as one who had got a mortal wound. 

When Christian saw that he came at him again, 
saying, " ISTay, in all these things we are more than 
conquerors through Him that loved us." 2 Then 
Apollyon spread forth his dragon's wings and flew 
away, and Christian saw him no more. 3 

No one can have any idea, unless he had seen this 
fight, what yelling and roaring Apollyon made ; 
he spoke like a dragon. And from Christian came 
groans and sighs. Never once all the time did he 
look pleased till he saw he had hurt Apollyon with 
his sword. Then "indeed he did smile and look 
upward. 

1 Mioah vii. 8. 2 Rom. viii. 37. 3 James iv. 7. 



The Fight With Apollyon 95 

So when the fight was over Christian said, " I 
will here give thanks to Him who saved me from 
the mouth of the lion, to Him that helped me 
against Apollyon." 

Then there came to him a hand, with some of 
the leaves of the tree of life. These leaves Chris- 
tian took and put to his wounds, and he was healed 
at once. He also sat down there and ate bread, 
and drank from the bottle that was given him a 
little while before. When he was rested he began 
his journey again, with his sword in his hand, for 
he said, " I know not but some other enemy may 
be near." 

Exposition 

When Christian entered the Palace Beautiful he 
came as a pilgrim, with staff in hand. He left it 
as a soldier fully armed for the fight. Thus we see 
him a Christian soldier as he enters the Valley of 
Humiliation. God does not give His soldiers arms 
to play with. They must win battles. We see 
here the hatred and power of the foe. As real as 
the work of Christ for us, and the work of the Holy 
Spirit in us, is the work of the enemy of souls 
against us. He tried Job, he caught David in a 
trap, he gave Peter the great sorrow of his life; 
and he is as active and busy as ever. We learn 
how Satan attacks us here. First he tries to coax 
Christian to go back with cunning words, and 
makes many fair promises. He says also there is 
no harm in sin, and that we shall not suffer if we 



96 The Fight With Apollyon 

do wrong. Then he points out how hard and pain- 
ful is the Christian journey, and how easy and 
pleasant is his service. But when he cannot talk 
Christian into going back, he tries to force him. 
Christian fights him and would not turn away. 
There was no armour on Christian's back, and had 
he been afraid and run away from Satan he would 
have been wounded in his back. " Eesist the devil, 
and he will flee from you." Christian's sword is 
" the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of 
God." The Bible is the sword. It was with this 
sword Jesus made Satan flee when he tempted our 
Lord in the wilderness. To all the devil said Jesus 
replied, " It is written." 

" Yield not to temptation, for yielding is sin ; 
Each victory will help you some other to win. 
Fight manfully onward, dark passions subdue ; 
Look ever to Jesus. He'll carry you through." 

Questions 

Whom did Christian see in the Valley of Hu- 
miliation ? 

What did this enemy look like ? 

Did Christian at first fear him ? 

Why did he say Christian belonged to him ? 

Would Christian say he would go back ? 

How was Christian helped in the fight, and how 
long did it last ? 

What fell out of Christian's hand ? 

How did he get the victory ? 

What did he say when he wounded Apollyon ? 

How were Christian's wounds healed, and whom 
did he thank ? 



VIII 

THE VALLEY OF THE SHADOW 
OF DEATH 

NOW at the end of this valley was another, 
called the Valley of the Shadow of Death, 
and Christian must go through it, be- 
cause the way to the Celestial City lay through the 
middle of it. This valley is a very lonely place — a 
land of deserts and of pits, a land of drought, and 
of the shadow of death ; a land that no man (but a 
Christian) passes through, and where no man dwelt. 1 
Here Christian was more sorely tried than even in 
his fight with Apollyon. 

When Christian got to the borders of the valley 
he met two men, hurrying to go back, to whom 
Christian spoke as follows : 

Christian : " Where are you going ? " 
Men : " Back ! back ! and you had better do the 
same if you value life or peace." 

Christian : " Why, what is the matter ? " 
Men : " Matter ! Why, we were going that way 
as you are going, and went as far as we dare and 
were indeed almost past coming back, for if we had 
gone a little farther, we would not have been here 
to bring you the news." 

Christian: " But what did you meet ? " 

1 Jer. ii. 6. 
97 



98 The Valley of 

Men : " "Why, we were almost in the Valley of 
the Shadow of Death, but we saw the danger before 
we came to it." 1 

Christian : " But what have you seen ? " 

Men : " Seen ! Why, the valley itself, which is 
as dark as pitch. We also saw there the hobgoblins, 
satyrs, and dragons of the pit. We heard in the 
valley howling and yelling, and very black clouds 
hanging over it. Death also doth spread his wings 
over it." 2 

Christian : " In spite of what you have said, this 
may be the way to the Celestial City." 3 

Men : " It may be your way, but it is not ours." 

So they parted, and Christian went on his way, 
but still kept his sword in his hand for fear he might 
have to use it. 

As far as this valley reached, it had on the right 
hand a very deep ditch, that ditch into which the 
blind have led the blind in all ages, and where they 
have lost their lives. 

And on the other side there was a very dangerous 
pit, into which, if even a good man fall, he can find 
no bottom for his feet. Into that place King David 
once fell, and would have died there, had not he 
that is able pulled him out. 4 

The pathway here was very narrow, and good 
Christian could scarcely walk on it. For when he 
tried in the dark to avoid the ditch on the one 
hand, he was almost falling into the pit on the other 

1 Ps. xliv. 19 ; cvii. 19. 2 Job iii. 5 ; x. 22. 

3 Ps. xliv. 18, 19 ; Jer ii. 6. 4 Ps. lxix. 14, 15. 



The Shadow of Death 99 

side. Also, when he tried to escape the mire, he 
nearly fell into the ditch. Thus he went on, and 
now and then sighed heavily, for the path was so 
dark that when he lifted his foot to step forward, 
he did not know where he would put it down 
again. 

About the middle of the valley stood the mouth 
of hell, close to the wayside. " Now," thought 
Christian, " what shall I do ? " Every now and 
then the flame and smoke would come forth, with 
sparks and awful sounds, so that he was forced to 
put up his sword, and take another weapon called 
All^prayer. 1 So he cried : " O Lord, I beseech 
Thee, deliver my soul ! " 2 Thus he went on for a 
long time, and still the flames would almost reach 
him. 

Also he heard sad voices, and rushings to and 
fro, so that he thought he would be torn in pieces, 
or trodden down like mud in the streets. 

For several miles these things went on. Then, 
coming to a place where he thought a band of 
fiends was coming towards him, he stopped, and 
began to wonder what he had best do. He almost 
made up his mind to go back. Then again he 
thought he might be half-way through the valley. 
He thought of other dangers he had come safely 
through, and that the danger of going back might 
be greater than that of going forward ; so he went 
on. 

Yet the fiends seemed to come nearer and nearer. 

^ph. vi. 18. 2 Ps. oxvi. 4. 



loo The Valley of 

But when they were almost on him he cried out : 
" I will walk in the strength of the Lord." So they 
fell back, and came no more. 

"When Christian had gone through the valley a 
long way, he thought he heard the voice of a man 
in front of him, saying : " Though I walk through 
the Valley of the Shadow of Death, I will fear no 
evil, for Thou art with me." ' Then Christian was 
glad, because he knew that some one who feared 
God was in this valley as well as himself. He saw 
that God was with him, though in that dark and 
dismal state ; " and why not," thought he, " with 
me ? " Then he hoped to come up to him by and 
by, and have him for company. So he went on 
and called to him that was before him, but did not 
as yet receive any answer. By and by day broke 
and Christian said : " He hath turned ' the shadow 
of death into the morning.' " 2 

Now morning being come, he looked back, not 
out of desire to return, but to see by the light of 
day what dangers he had gone through in the dark. 
So he saw more clearly the ditch on the one hand 
and the pit on the other, and also how narrow was 
the way which led between them. 

He now saw the hobgoblins, satyrs, and dragons 
of the pit, but all afar off, for after daylight they 
do not come near. 

About this time the sun was rising, and this was 
another mercy to Christian, because, if the first 
part of the Valley of the Shadow of Death was full 

1 Ps. xxiii. 4. a Amos v. 8. 




IN THE VALLEY OF THE SHADOW OF DEATH 
So he cried in my hearing, "0 Lord, I beseech Thee, 

deliver my soul. ' ' 



The Shadow of Death 101 

of danger, the second part, which he now was 
entering, was even worse. 

For from the place where he now stood even to 
the end of the valley, the way was set so full of 
snares, traps, gins and nets, and so full of pits, deep 
holes, and slippery places, that had it been dark he 
would have been cast away. But now the sun was 
shining, and Christian said : " His candle shineth 
upon my head, and by its light I walk through 
darkness." * In this light, he came to the end of 
the valley. 

There lay, at this end of the valley, blood, bones, 
ashes, and mangled bodies of pilgrims who had 
gone this way in other days. Then, a little way 
off, was a cave, where two giants, Pope and Pagan, 
lived in old time, by whose power the men whose 
bones and ashes lay there had been put to death. 
But by this place Christian went without much 
danger, because Pagan has been dead for many a 
day, and as for the other, though he is alive, yet 
because he is very old, and had many attacks 
made on him in his younger days, he can do little 
more than sit at the mouth of his cave, grin at 
pilgrims as they pass by, and bite his nails because 
he cannot come at them. 

Now, as Christian went on, he came to a little 
hill, which was made for pilgrims that they might 
see in front of them. Up there Christian went, and, 
looking forward, he saw Faithful before him on 
his journey. Then said Christian aloud, " Stay, 

1 Job xxix. 3. 



102 The Valley of 

and I will go with you." At that Faithful looked 
behind him, and Christian cried again : " Stay ! 
stay! till I come up with you." But Faithful 
answered, " No. I am fleeing for my life, and the 
avenger of blood is behind me." At this Christian 
put forth all his strength, and quickly caught up 
with Faithful, and passed him by, so the last was 
first. 

Then did Christian smile, because he felt proud 
that he had got in front of his brother ; but not 
looking well to his feet, he stumbled and fell, and 
could not rise again until Faithful came to help 
him. 

Then they went on very lovingly together, and 
talked of all the things they had passed through 
on their journey. And thus Christian began. 

Christian : " I am glad indeed that I have come 
up with you, and that we are so agreed that we 
can walk as friends on this pleasant path." 

Faithful : " I thought I would have had you 
with me all the way from our city, but you got the 
start of me, and I had to come on my way alone." 

Christian : " How long did you stay in the City 
of Destruction before you set out after me on your 
journey ? " 

Faithful: "Till I could stay no longer. For 
there was a great deal of talk, after you had gone, 
that our city would be burned with fire from 
heaven." 

Christian: "And did no more than you come 
away to escape the dauger ? " 



The Shadow of Death 103 

Faithful : " Though there was much talk about 
it, yet I do not think they firmly believed it. For 
I heard some of them laugh and speak of your jour- 
ney as if it were very foolish. But I believed, and 
do believe, that the end of our city will be with fire 
and brimstone from above. So I have made my 
escape." 

Christian : " Did you hear any talk of friend 
Pliable ? " 

Faithful : "Yes, I heard that he had gone with 
you till he came to the Slough of Despond, where, 
some said, he fell in. 

Christian : " But why should they make fun of 
him, since they also dislike the way he forsook ? " 

Faithful : " * Oh,' they say, ' hang him ! he is a 
turncoat. He was not true to what he believed.' 
I think that God has stirred up his foes to mock at 
him, and make him a proverb because he has left 
the way." 1 

Christian : " Had you no talk with him before 
you left the city ? " 

Faithful : "I met him once in the streets, but he 
turned away on the other side, as if he was ashamed 
of what he had done, so I did not speak to him." 

Christian : " Well, at my first setting out I had 
hopes of that man ; but now I fear he will perish 
in the overthrow of the city." 

Faithful : " These are my fears also ; but who 
can hinder that which will be ? " 

Christian : " Well, friend Faithful, let us leave 

1 Jer xxix. 18, 19. 



104 The Valley of 

him, and talk of things that more concern ourselves. 
Tell me, now, what you have met with in the way 
as you came ; for I know you have met some things, 
for it would indeed have been a wonder if you had 
not." 

Faithful: "I escaped the Slough which I saw 
you fell into, and got up to the gate without that 
danger. But I met with one whose name was 
Wanton, who tried to do me great harm. Also at 
the foot of the Hill Difficulty an old man, whose 
name was Adam the First, who lived in the town 
of Deceit, 1 and who asked me to live with him and 
work for him, and he would give good wages. He 
said he would make me his heir at last ; and that 
he had three daughters, all of whom I could marry 
if I liked. Their names were, 'The Lust of the 
Flesh,' ' The Lust of the Eyes,' and < The Pride of 
Life.' 2 At first I was almost willing to go with the 
man, for I thought he spoke very fairly. But look- 
ing at his forehead I saw written there, ' Put off the 
old man with his deeds.' So I told him to talk no 
more, as I would not go near his door. So he 
called me names, and said he would send some one 
after me, who would make my way very hard to 
my soul. 

" Now, when I had got half-way up the hill, I 
looked behind and saw some one coming after me, 
swift as the wind. He came up to me, and with 
but a word and a blow, he knocked me down, and 
left me for dead. When I came to myself I asked 

1 Eph. iv. 22. 2 1 John ii. 16. 



The Shadow of Death 105 

him why he did that. He said because I had al- 
most gone in with Adam the First. With that he 
gave me another blow on the breast, and I lay at 
his feet, as nearly dead as before. When I came to 
myself I cried for mercy, but he said, ' I know not 
how to show mercy,' and gave me another awful 
blow. He would have killed me, but one came by, 
who told him to stop. At first I did not know who 
this was, but as he went by I saw the holes in his 
hands and side, so I knew it was our Lord. Then I 
went up the hill." 

Exposition 
The great lesson we learn from the story of the 
Valley of the Shadow of Death is the sure help of 
God. No matter how dark the way, nor how great 
the trials, nor how weak the pilgrim, God can 
bring him safely through. There come times of 
doubt and despair into every life. Even John 
Bunyan passed through such experiences, when 
everything was dark, and not a ray of light could 
be seen, not a hope could he cherish, not a promise 
could he touch, not a joy could he feel. Then it is 
that prayer to God is the best help. When life is 
dark, go straight to God. God delights in the peo- 
ple of His love, and will never cast them off. 

" Abide with me. Fast foils the eventide : 
The darkness deepens ; Lord, with me abide. 
When other helpers fail and comforts flee, 
Help of the helpless, Lord, abide with me." 



106 The Valley 

The names Pope and Pagan tell us of the terrible 
deaths thousands of pilgrims died in past ages, for 
the sake of their faith. Some were burned, some 
stoned to death, some drowned, and some given to 
beasts of prey. They were the " noble army of 
martyrs " who had been true to God, and died 
rather than leave the narrow way. John Bunyan 
knew of all this, because he had read Foxe's " Book 
of Martyrs." 

When Christian came through this dark trial 
safely, he found a good Christian friend in Faithful. 
You will notice Faithful would not stop for Chris- 
tian. That tells us we are to make our soul's salva- 
tion the business of life, and allow no one to keep 
us back. 

It was pride that made Christian fall ; he thought 
he was a stronger pilgrim than Faithful. Yet it is 
Faithful who helps him to rise again. 



Questions 

What was the name of this valley ? 

Whom did Christian meet, and where were they 
going ? 

What was this valley like ? 

What was on his right side, and on his left ? 

What did he hear that made him glad ? 

Whom did he see at the mouth of the cave, and 
what were their names ? 

Whom did Christian see before him, and why 
was he in great haste ? 

What temptations did Faithful meet with ? 



IX 
CHKISTIAN, FAITHFUL AND TALKATIVE 

CHKISTIAN and Faithful went on together, 
and Christian said, "Did you meet with 
no one in the Valley of Humiliation ? " 

Faithful : " Yes. I met with a man named Dis- 
content, who wanted me to go back with him. 
He said if I went on I would offend my friends, 
Pride, Self-conceit and Worldly-glory, if I made 
such a fool of myself as to wade through this 
valley." 

Christian : " What did you say ? " 

Faithful: " I told him that these friends of mine 
had turned their backs on me since I became a 
pilgrim ; also that to go through this valley was 
said to be the wisest thing to do by those that 
knew best." 

Christian : " Did you meet with no one else ? " 

Faithful : " Yes. I met with Shame, but of all 
men that I met in my pilgrimage he, I think, 
bears the wrong name, for no matter what was 
said to him, this bold-faced Shame would not stop 
talking." 

Christian : " Why, what did he say to you ? " 

Faithful: "What! Why, he did not like re- 
ligion itself ; he said it was a low, pitiful, sneaking 
thing for a man to mind religion. He said a 

107 



108 Christian, Faithful 

tender conscience was an unmanly thing, and for a 
man to watch his words and ways only made others 
laugh at him. He said few of the mighty, rich or 
wise were like me. 1 He said that nearly all the 
pilgrims were base and low-born, and they were 
not educated in all science. Yes, and he told me 
also that it was a shame to sit weeping and mourn- 
ing over a sermon, and a shame to come groaning 
and sighing home. That it was a shame to ask my 
friend's pardon for little faults or to pay back what 
I owed. He said religion made a man grow 
strange to the great, because he would not share 
in their sins, and made a man own and respect the 
low-born because they were good. 'And is not 
this,' said he, ' a shame ? ' " 

Christian : " And what did you say to him ? " 
Faithful : " Say ? I could not tell what to say 
at the first, and I was so upset that the blood came 
into my face. Then I thought : this Shame tells 
me what men are, but tells me nothing about God 
and the Word of God. So I thought what God 
says is best — indeed, is best, though all the men of 
the world are against it. Seeing, then, that God 
prefers religion ; seeing that God prefers a tender 
conscience ; and that the poor man who loves Christ 
is richer than the greatest man in the world who 
hates Him, Shame, go away ! You are a foe to my 
faith. But, indeed, Shame was a bold, bad man. 
I could not get rid of him, for he would come after 
me and whisper in my ear some of the failures of 
l l Cor. i. 26-29 ; iii. 18, 19; Phil. iii. 7-9, 



And Talkative 109 

faith. But at last I told him it was vain for him 
to try to turn me away, so he let me alone." 

Christian : "I am glad you did refuse this bad 
man, for he is so bold as to follow us in the streets, 
and try to make us feel shame before all men ; that 
is, ashamed of what is good. But did you meet no 
one else in the valley ? " 

Faithful: "No, not I." 

Christian: "It was well for you, for I had a 
dreadful fight with that foul fiend, Apollyon. 
Then I went into the Yalley of the Shadow of 
Death, and had no light for almost half of the way 
through it." 

Now, as they went on, Faithful, as he chanced to 
look on one side, saw a man, whose name is Talka- 
tive, walking at a distance beside them ; for in this 
place there was room enough for them all to walk. 
He was a tall man, and looked better at a distance 
than close at hand. To this man Faithful said, 
" Friend, where are you going ? Are you going to 
the heavenly country ? " 

Talkative : " Yes, I am going to that place." 

Faithful : " That is good. Then I hope we may 
have your good company." 

Talkative : " With a very good will will I be 
your company." 

Faithful: "Come on, then, and let us talk to- 
gether, and let us spend our time speaking of things 
that will do us good." 

Talkative: "To talk of things that are good 
gives me great joy, and I am glad to have met 



1 1 o Christian, Faithful 

those who wish to do the same. For, to tell the 
truth, there are but few that care thus to spend 
their time, but would rather speak of things that 
do no good and are thus a trouble to me." 

Faithful : " That is indeed a pity, for what so 
well worth talking about as the things of God and 
of heaven ? " 

Talkative : " I like you well, for what you say 
is true, and I will add, what thing so pleasant, and 
so full of profit, as to talk of the things of God ? 
For instance, if a man loves to talk of the history 
or mystery of things, or loves to talk of miracles, 
wonders and signs, where shall he find things told, 
or so sweetly written, as in the holy Word of 
God?" 

Faithful: "That is true; but to be helped 
should be our wish when we talk of such things.'' 

Talkatwe : " That is what I said ; for to talk of 
such things is full of help, because a man may get 
to know the vanity of earthly things and the benefit 
of things above. Thus a man may learn of the 
new birth, the want of success in all our works, the 
need of Christ, etc. Besides, a man may learn, by 
talk, what it is to repent, to believe, to pray, to 
suffer, or the like ; by this also a man may learn 
what are the great promises of the Gospel to his 
own comfort. Further, a man may learn to over- 
throw false ideas, to stand by the truth, and to 
teach those who do not know." 

Faithful: "All this is true, and I am glad to 
hear such things from you." 



And Talkative 1 1 1 

Talkative : " Alas ! the want of this is the cause 
why so few know the need of faith, and the need 
of a work of grace in their souls, in order to get 
eternal life. But they live by the works of the 
law, by which a man can by no means obtain the 
kingdom of heaven." 

Faithful : " Pardon me, but to know these things 
is the gift of God. No man finds them merely by 
talking about them." 

Talkative : " All this I know very well. All is 
of grace and not of works." 

Faithful: "Well, then, what is the one thing 
that we shall speak about ? " 

Talkative : " What you like. I will talk of 
things heavenly, or things earthly, things moral or 
things evangelical, things sacred or things profane, 
things past or things to come, things foreign or 
things at home, so that it may be all done to our 
good." 

Now Faithful began to wonder, and stepping to 
Christian (for Christian had walked by himself all 
this time), he said to him very softly, " What a 
brave friend we have got ! Surely this man will 
make a good pilgrim." 

Christian : " This man with whom you are so 
taken will deceive, with his tongue, twenty of them 
that know him not." 

Faithful : " Do you know him ? " 

Christian : " Yes ; better than he knows him- 
self." 

Faithful : " Pray, what is he ? " 



112 Christian, Faithful 

Christian: "His name is Talkative. He lives 
in our town. I wonder you do not know him. 
But then our town is large. He is the son of a 
man named Say-well ; he lives in Prating Eow, and 
is known to all as Talkative of Prating Row, and 
in spite of his fine speech he is a bad man." 

Faithful: " Well, he seems a good man." 

Christian : " This man likes any company, and 
is fond of any talk. He will talk when he is on 
the ale-bench, and the more he drinks the more of 
these things he hath in his mouth. Religion has 
no place in his heart or his home ; all he has lies 
on his tongue, and he is fond of making a noise." 

Faithful : " Then I have made a great mistake 
about this man." 

Christian : " Yes, you have, and I know what I 
said of him is the truth. His house is as empty of 
religion as the white of an egg is of taste. There 
is neither prayer, nor any sense of sorrow for sin. 
The brute in his kind serves God far better than he. 
He is the very stain, reproach and shame of re- 
ligion to all that know him. 1 Religion is not well 
thought of in all that end of the town where he 
lives because of him. Thus say those that know 
him well, ' A saint abroad and a devil at home.' 
His poor family know it ; he is so cross, scolds so 
much, and is so hard on his servants that they do 
not know how to please him, nor speak to him. 
Men who have dealings with him say it is better to 
deal with a Turk than with him, for they would 

1 Rom. ii. 24, 25. 



And Talkative 1 13 

get a fairer deal. This Talkative will outwit them, 
cheat them and overreach them. Besides, he brings 
up his sons to follow in his footsteps, and if one 
tries to do what is right he calls him a fool and 
blockhead. He has made many fall, and will, un- 
less God hinders him, be the cause of the ruin of 
many more." 

Faithful : " Well, I see now that doing and say- 
ing are two different things, and I shall always from 
now mark the one from the other." 

Christian : " These two things are as unlike as 
soul and body. The soul of religion is the active 
part. ' Pure religion and undefiled, before God 
and the Father, is this : to visit the fatherless and 
widows in their affliction, and to keep himself un- 
spotted from the world.' " ' 

Faithful : " Well, I was not so fond of his com- 
pany, but I am sick of it now. What would you 
have me do ? " 

Christian : " Why, go to him, and talk to him 
about religion. And ask him plainly, when he has 
approved of it, if he sets it up in his heart or his 
home." 

Then Faithful set forward again, and said, 
" Come, Talkative, what cheer ? " 

Talkative : " Thank you, I am well, but I thought 
we should have had a great deal of talk by this 
time." 

So Faithful put some questions to Talkative, and 
from his answers saw now that Christian was right, 
1 Jas. i. 27. 



114 Christian, Faithful 

and that Talkative was a man who only talked, 
but did not act. At last Faithful said, " A work of 
grace in the soul shows itself to him who has it, or 
to others who stand by. To him in whose heart, 
it is he feels his sins, and thinks he will be lost, un- 
less God has mercy on him. But in Christ he puts 
his trust, and rests in Him. To others the work of 
grace is seen by a life which is in keeping with the 
Christian faith. Holiness, heart-holiness, family- 
holiness, if he has a family. And now, sir, do you 
know the first part of it, and do your life and acts 
prove it ? Or is your religion only in your tongue, 
and not in deed and truth ? Now, to say I am thus 
and thus, when my acts, and all my friends, tell me 
I lie, is a very great sin." 

Then Talkative at first began to blush ; but, get- 
ting over it, he said, " You come now to acts, and 
conscience, and God, and appeal to Him to prove 
what you say. This kind of talk I do not like, nor 
will I answer your questions. But will you tell me 
why you ask them ? " 

Faithful : " Because I saw you loved to talk, and 
I had heard you are a man whose religion lies in 
talk and in nothing else." 

Talkative : " Since you are ready to judge rashly, 
and listen to reports, I see you are not fit to talk 
with, and so good-bye." 

Then Christian came up with Faithful, and said, 
" I told you how it would happen ; your words and 
his sins do not agree, and he would rather leave you 
than change his way." 



And Talkative 115 

Thus they went on talking of what they had seen 
by the way, and so made that easy which would no 
doubt have been very hard for them, for they went 
through a wilderness. 

Exposition 
Faithful found in Shame a very bold fellow, who 
did his best to turn him out of the way. Could 
any words tell more surely what it is that makes 
the red blood mount to the face of many young pil- 
grims to-day ? It is still said that it is not a 
manly thing to be a follower of Christ ; that the 
greatest men of the day are opposed to Christian- 
ity ; that the best set in society are seldom deeply 
religious ; that the way of the cross is still a very 
humbling road for most men. But it is a great 
mistake to say that the cleverest men are against re- 
ligion. Professor Eomanes, one of the most learned 
men of science, has said, in his " Thoughts on 
Keligion," that one thing which made a very strong 
impression on him was the fact that the greatest 
names in science in the University of Cambridge 
were the names of believing Christian men. It is a 
false and sinful shame which makes us ashamed of 
Jesus Christ. 

" Ashamed of Jesus ! that dear friend, 
On whom my hopes of heaven depend ! 
No, when I blush, be this my shame, 
That I no more revere His name.' 7 

Talkative is one of those who may " speak with 
the tongue of men and angels, and have not love." 



Il6 Christian, Faithful 

He is a talker and a hearer of the Word, but not a 
doer. He is one of those who forget that faith 
without works is dead, and should also remember 
the text, " Let us not love in tongue, but in deed 
and in truth." This man seems at first sight a 
saint, and only a closer view shows he is not. Now 
there was no harm in talking, nor in talking about 
religion, for we ought to speak often one to another 
of God. The harm lay here— he talked, and did 
nothing hut talk. His words are not from the 
heart, nor do they lead him to do good works. It 
is what we do more than what we say, which 
proves what we are. When Dr. Duncan was once 
asked if some of the writings of the early Fathers 
was not poor stuff, he said, " Perhaps they could 
write but poorly for Christ ; but they could burn 
fearlessly for Him." 

" Our true speech is to work well, to love much, 
and to do great good." 



Questions 

Whom did Faithful meet in the valley ? 
What did Shame say to him ? 
Did Faithful follow his advice ? 
Whom did Faithful and Christian meet next ? 
Whose son was he, and where did he live ? 
Why was he not liked in his own town ? 
How did Faithful find out his fault ? 
What was wrong with Talkative's religion ? 



X 
VANITY FAIR 

NOW when they were almost through this 
wild place Faithful chanced to look back 
and saw one coming after them. 

" Oh," said Faithful to his brother, " who comes 
yonder ? " 

Then Christian looked and said, " It is my good 
friend, Evangelist." 

" Aye, and my good friend, too," said Faithful, 
" for it was he who set me on the way to the 
gate." 

When Evangelist came up to them he said, 
" Peace be with you, dearly beloved." 

Christian: "Welcome, good Evangelist. The 
sight of your face recalls all your kindness to me." 

Evangelist : " How have you journeyed since we 
last parted ? What have you met with, and how 
did you conduct yourselves ? " 

Then Christian and Faithful told him all things 
that had happened to them in the way. 

Evangelist : " I am very glad that, though you 
have had trials, you have proved victors. My sons, 
you have often heard that through much sorrow 
you enter the kingdom of heaven. You have 
found a little of the truth of this, but more is to 
follow. You are almost out of this wild place, and 

117 



1 18 Vanity Fair 

will soon come into a town that you will see by 
and by. In that town you will be hard beset by 
enemies who will try hard to kill you. Be you 
sure that one or both of you must seal the faith 
which you hold with blood. But be you faithful 
unto death, and the King will give you a crown of 
life. He who dies there will be the better off, not 
only because he will arrive at the Celestial City 
soonest, but he shall escape many bitter trials which 
the other will pass through on his journey. When 
you are come to the town, remember what I have 
said, and quit you like men, and commit the keeping 
of your souls unto God, as unto a faithful Creator." 
When they were out of the wilderness they soon 
came to a town, and that town was called Vanity. 
And in the town there is a fair kept, called Vanity 
Fair. It is kept all the year round. It bears the 
name of Vanity Fair because the town where it is 
held is lighter than vanity. 1 This fair is no newly 
erected business. It is of long standing, and this is 
how it started : Almost five thousand years ago 
there were pilgrims walking to the Celestial City, 
as these two honest persons are ; and Beelzebub, 
Apollyon and Legion, with their friends, seeing the 
way to the city led through this town of Vanity, 
arranged to set up a fair here, at which should be 
sold all sorts of vanity, and that should go on all 
the year round. Therefore, at this fair are all such 
things sold as houses, lands, trades, places, honours, 
titles, countries, kingdoms, lusts and pleasures. 
1 Ps. lxii. 9. 



Vanity Fair 119 

Also delights of all sorts, husbands, wives, children, 
masters, servants, lives, blood, bodies, souls, silver, 
gold, pearls, precious stones, and what not. 

At this fair there are at all times to be seen 
cheats, games, plays, fools, apes, knaves, rogues of 
every kind. Here are to be seen also, and that for 
nothing, thefts, murders, false swearers, and all 
kinds of crimes. There are places, rows and streets, 
where the wares of this fair are to be found, such 
as the Britain Kow, the French Eow, the Italian 
Kow, the Spanish Eow and the German Kow. 
Now, as I have said, the way to the Celestial City 
lies just through this town where this lusty fair is 
kept, and he who will go to the city, and yet not 
go through this fair, must go out of the world. 1 

The Prince of princes himself, when here, went 
through this town to his own country, and that 
upon a fair day. Yes, and it was Beelzebub, the 
chief lord of this fair, who invited him to buy his 
vanities, and would have made him lord of the fair 
if he had only bowed down to him as he passed 
through the town. Because he was such a person 
of honour Beelzebub led him from street to street, 
and showed him all the kingdoms of the world in 
a little time. He did this to tempt the Blessed 
One to buy some of his vanities. But he had no 
mind for such goods, and left the town without 
spending one farthing upon its vanities. 2 

Now Christian and Faithful entered the town, 
and began to go through the fair. All the people 

1 1 Cor. v. 10. 2 Matt. iv. 1-11 ; Luke iv. 5-8. 



no Vanity Fair 

in the fair were moved, and the town itself was in 
a hubbub about them, and that for several reasons. 
First, the pilgrims were clothed in garments so 
very different from those worn by the people at 
the fair; and the people, looking at them, said 
they were fools, or mad, or men come from some 
strange land. 1 

Then their speech was also different, for few 
knew what they said, as they spoke the language of 
Canaan, while those that kept the fair were men 
of this world. But what made the people of the 
fair laugh most of all was that the pilgrims did not 
value the goods of the fair. They would not so 
much as look at them, and when called on to buy 
they put their fingers in their ears and cried, " Turn 
away mine eyes from beholding vanity," 2 and they 
would look upward to show that their trade and 
traffic was with heaven. 3 

One of the traders said, with a laugh, " What 
will you buy ? " But they looked at him and said, 
" We buy the truth." 4 At that they despised the 
pilgrims more than ever, some mocking, some taunt- 
ing, and some calling on others to strike them. At 
last things came to a hubbub and great stir in the 
fair, so much so that all order was upset. 

Now the word was quickly brought to the great 
one of the fair, who quickly sent some of his trusty 
friends to take these men and examine them, by 
whom the fair was set in an uproar. 

1 Job xii. 4 ; 1 Cor. iv. 9. 2 Ps. cxix. 37. 

3 Phil. iii. 20, 21. 4 Prov. xxiii. 23. 



Vanity Fair 121 

So Christian and Faithful were asked by those 
who were sent to examine them whence they came, 
whither they were going, and what they were do- 
ing in the fair in such strange clothes. They re- 
plied that they were pilgrims in the world, and 
that they were going to their own country, which 
is the heavenly Jerusalem. 1 And they had given 
no cause for the men of the town, nor yet the 
traders, to abuse them and stop them on their 
journey, except when one asked them to buy they 
said they would buy the truth. But they that 
examined them believed them to be either bad or 
mad, or else they had come for the purpose of up- 
setting the fair. So they took them and beat them, 
and covered them with dirt, and put them into the 
cage, that they might be a show to all men in the 
fair. 

There they lay for some time, and were made an 
object of every man's sport or cruelty, the great 
one laughing at all that happened to them. But 
the pilgrims, being patient and answering good 
words for bad, some men in the fair, who saw 
most, began to check and blame the more evil sort 
for the cruel way they treated the pilgrims. Then 
the people of the fair began to fall out among 
themselves, and there was some righting among 
them. The pilgrims all the while behaved them- 
selves very wisely before the people. They were 
again brought before their examiners and charged 
with making this new hubbub in the fair. So the 
»Heb. xi. 13-16. 



122 Vanity Fair 

pilgrims were severely beaten, and irons put on them, 
and they were led in chains up and down the fair 
as an example and terror to others, and so that 
none should say anything in their favour, or be- 
come like them. But Christian and Faithful be- 
haved themselves still more wisely, and bore the 
shame put on them so quietly that it won to their 
side several of the men of the fair. 

JSTow the pilgrims recalled what Evangelist had 
told them, and they cheered one another, and, cast- 
ing all on God, who ruleth all things, they gladly 
waited till they should see what would next happen. 
After a while Christian and Faithful were brought 
forth to their trial, in order that they might be put 
to death. The judge's name was Lord Hate-Good. 
The charge against them was " that they were foes 
to and disturbers of their trade, and caused fights 
and trouble in the town, and had won a party to 
their side, in contempt of the law of their prince." 

Then Faithful began to answer that he had only 
set himself against those who were against Him 
who is higher than the highest. " And," said he, 
" as for trouble, I made none, being a man of 
peace. Those that were won over to our side were 
won by seeing our truth and innocence. Besides, 
they turned from worse to better. And as for the 
king you talk of, since he is Beelzebub, the enemy 
of our Lord, I defy him and all his angels." 

Then it was proclaimed that all who had any- 
thing to say for their lord and king against the 
prisoner at the bar were to come forth and give 



Vanity Fair 123 

their evidence. So there came three witnesses, 
Envy, Superstition and Pickthank. They were 
then asked what they knew about the prisoner at 
the bar, and what they had to say for their lord 
and king against him. 

Exposition 
This is the most wonderful picture of the world 
which genius ever wrote. Vanity Fair is the 
" world " in the sense in which that term is used 
of a power which hates the pilgrims and their Lord. 
The Word of God which reveals a Holy Trinity of 
Father, Son and Holy Spirit above us reveals also 
a trinity of evil around us, the World, the Flesh 
and the Devil. To the people of Vanity Fair the 
wares are all in all. They cannot think of any- 
thing outside these, and have no higher desire than 
to own them, and all who do not think as they do 
they call fools or mad. The motto of Vanity is, 
"Let us eat and drink, for to-morrow we die." 
Every Christian must go through Vanity Fair or 
go out of the world. But while in Vanity Fair we 
need not be of Vanity Fair. Always seek first the 
kingdom of God. No one can tell how much we 
influence men for good when we are faithful to 
God. Several men of the- fair became pilgrims 
through seeing the faith of Christian and his friend. 
Hopeful replaces Faithful when Faithful died, so 
the blood of the martyrs is the seed of the Church. 
This chapter should be read over and over again, 
as it explains itself. 



124 Vanity Fair 

Questions 

Who joined Christian and Faithful as they 
walked ? 

Where had Faithful last seen Evangelist ? 

Of what did Evangelist warn Christian and 
Faithful ? 

What crown did he promise in the name of the 
King? 

What town did they reach after they came out 
of the wilderness ? 

What is held there all the year round ? 

How old is the fair ? 

How was it started, and by whom ? 

What things are sold there ? 

Why must the pilgrims pass through ? 

What Prince went before them ? 

Who asked him to buy vanities ? 

Why were the people angry with the pilgrims ? 

How did Christian and Faithful differ from the 
people in the fair ? 

How did they ill-treat the pilgrims ? 

What made the people of the fair fight among 
themselves ? 

How did Christian and Faithful behave ? 

Where were they put until the trial should 
begin ? 

What was the name of their judge ? 

What was the charge against Christian and 
Faithful ? 

What was Faithful's answer ? 

What three men were witnesses against Faithful ? 



XI 
FAITHFUL'S TEIAL AND DEATH 

NOW Envy stood forth and said, " My lord, 
this man, in spite of his name, is one of 
the vilest men in our country. He has 
no regard for prince or people, law or custom, but 
does all he can to fill other men with his disloyal 
notions, which he calls faith and holiness. And I 
myself heard him say that Christian faith and the 
customs of our town Yanity were opposed to one 
another, and would always be, by which saying, 
my lord, he not only condemns these customs, but us 
also who observe them." 

Next came Superstition, who said, " My lord, I 
do not know much about this man, nor do I want 
to know him. But this I do know, that he is a 
very bad man, for when I had a talk with him 
the other day in this town he said that our re- 
ligion was such that it could by no means please 
God, which saying, my lord, simply means that 
we worship in vain, are yet in our sins, and shall 
at last be punished. This is all I have to say." 

Pickthank then came forward and said, "My 
lord, I have known this fellow for a long time, 
and have heard him say things he ought not to 
have said. He mocked our noble prince, Beelze- 

125 



126 Faithful's Trial 

bub, and spoke with great contempt of his friends, 
whose names are Lord Old Man, the Lord Carnal 
Delight, the Lord Desire of Yain Glory, my old 
Lord Lechery, Sir Having Greedy, with all the 
rest of our noble friends. Besides, he has not 
been afraid to speak ill of you, my lord, who are 
now his judge, calling you an ungodly and bad 
man." 

When Pickthank had finished, the judge said to 
Faithful, " Thou runagate, heretic and traitor, have 
you heard what these honest gentlemen have said 
against you ? " 

Faithful : " May I say a few words in my de- 
fense ? " 

Judge : " Sir, sir, you deserve to live no longer, 
but to be slain at once. But that all men may see 
how gentle we are towards you, let us hear what 
you, vile runagate, have to say." 

Faithful : " I say, then, in answer to Mr. Envy, 
that I never said anything but this : That what 
rules, or laws, or customs, or people, were flat 
against the Word of God, are opposed to the Chris- 
tian faith. If I said what was wrong, convince me 
of my error and I will take it back. In reply to 
Mr. Superstition, let me say that in the worship of 
God there is required a divine faith. There can be 
no divine faith unless it is divinely revealed by the 
will of God. What is brought into the worship of 
God that was not divinely revealed is a human faith, 
and that faith will not profit to eternal life. And 
as for Mr. Pickthank, I say that the prince of this 



And Death 1 27 

town, with all his attendants, as already named, 
are more fit for hell than for this town and 
country ; and so may the Lord have mercy on 
me." 

Then the judge said to the jury : " Gentlemen of 
the jury, you see this man, about whom so great an 
uproar has been made in this town. You have 
heard what these worthy gentlemen have said 
against him. You have heard his reply. It is now 
for you to hang him or save his life. But I think I 
must first instruct you in our laws. There was an 
act made in the days of Pharaoh the Great, a serv- 
ant of our prince, against those of a different relig- 
ion. In order that they might not increase too fast 
and become too strong for him, all their young 
children were thrown into the river. 1 There was 
another act made in the days of Nebuchadnezzar 
the Great, that all who did not fall down and wor- 
ship his golden image should be thrown into a fiery 
furnace. 2 There was also an act made in the days 
of Darius, that if any called on any other god but 
him, they should be cast into the lions' den. 3 Now 
the prisoner at the bar has broken these laws, not 
only in thought, but also in word and deed." 

Then the jury went into another room. Their 
names were : Mr. Blind-man, Mr. No-good, Mr. 
Malice, Mr. Love-lust, Mr. Live-loose, Mr. Heady, 
Mr. High-mind, Mr. Enmity, Mr. Liar, Mr. Cruelty ? 
Mr. Hate-light and Mr. Implacable. Among them- 
selves they concluded to say that Faithful was 

x Exod. i. 22. 2 Dan. iii. 6. 3 Dan. vi. 7. 



128 Faithful's Trial 

guilty. Mr. Blind-man, the foreman, said, " I see 
clearly that this man is a heretic." 

Mr. No-good : " Away with such a fellow from 
the earth." 

Mr. Malice : "Aye, for I hate the very looks of 
him." 
Mr. Love-lust: "I could never endure him." 
Mr. Live-loose : " Nor I, for he would ever con- 
demn my way." 

Mr. Heady : " Hang him ! Hang him ! " 
Mr. High-mind : " A sorry scrub." 
Mr. Enmity : " My heart riseth against him." 
Mr. Liar: " He is a rogue and a liar." 
Mr. Cruelty : " Hanging is too good for him." 
Mr. Hate-light : " Let us despatch him out of the 
way." 

Mr. Iinplacable : "If I had all the world given 
to me I could not like him. Let us bring him in 
guilty of death." 

And so they did, and he was taken from the 
place where he was to the place whence he came 
and put to a cruel death. They whipped him and 
beat him, and cut him with knives, and stoned him 
with stones, and, last of all, they burned him to 
ashes at the stake. Thus Faithful died. 

Now there stood behind the crowd a chariot and 
a span of horses waiting for Faithful. As soon as he 
passed away he was taken into it, and was carried 
up through the clouds, with sound of trumpet, the 
nearest way to the Celestial City. 

But as for Christian, he had a rest, and was put 



And Death 129 

back into prison, where he stayed for a time. But 
he who rules all things so brought it about that 
at last Christian escaped them, and went on his 
way. 

Now Christian went not forth alone, for one 
whose name was Hopeful went with him, and said 
he would be his companion. This Hopeful was 
won over to their side by seeing Christian and 
Faithful behave so bravely during their trials at the 
fair. Thus one died for the truth, and another rose 
out of his ashes to go with Christian on his pilgrim 
journey. This Hopeful told Christian that there 
were many more men at the fair who would take 
their time and follow after. When they had gone 
out of the fair they caught up with one who was in 
front, whose name was By-ends. So they said, 
" Well, friend, how far are you going this way ? " 
He told them he was from the town of Fair-speech, 
and he was going to the Celestial City, but did not 
tell them his name. 

Christian : " Sir, what may I call you ? " 

By-ends : " I am a stranger to you and you to 
me. If you are going this way, I shall be glad to 
go with you ; if not, I must be content." 

Christian : " This town of Fair-speech I have 
heard about. They say it is a wealthy place." 

By-ends : " Yes, I tell you it is, and I have many 
rich friends there." 

Christian : " Who are your friends, if I may be 
so bold as to ask ? " 

By-ends : " Nearly all in the town. My Lord 



130 Faithful's Trial 

Turn-about, my Lord Time-server, my Lord Fait, 
speech, also Mr. Smooth-man, Mr. Facing-both 
ways, Mr. Any-thing, and the parson of our parish, 
Mr. Two-tongues. I am a man of good quality, yet 
my great-grandfather was a water-man, rowing one 
way and looking another, and I got most of my es- 
tate in the same way." 

Christian : " Are you a married man ? " 

By-ends : " Yes, and my wife is the daughter of 
Lady Feigning. It is true we differ in religion from 
some, yet but in two small points. First, we never 
strive against wind and tide. Second, we are al- 
ways full of zeal when religion goes in silver slip- 
pers. We love much to walk with him in the street, 
if the sun shines and people praise him." 

Then Christian stepped aside to his friend Hope- 
ful, and said, " I think this is By-ends of Fair- 
speech. If so, he is a great rogue ; but I will ask 
him." 

Christian : " Is not your name Mr. By-ends of 
Fair-speech ? " 

By-ends : il That is not my name, but it is a 
nickname given by some that cannot abide me." 

Christian ; " But did you never give them cause 
to call you by that name ? " 

By-ends : " Never, never ! The worst that I ever 
did, to give them cause to call me that name, was 
that L always had the good luck to be on the 
winning side, and get the best things." 

Christian : " Well, if you go with us, you must 
go against wind and tide. You must be friends 




FAITHTUL S MARTYRDOM 
Last of all they burned him to ashes at the stake. Thus came 
Faithful to Ms end. 



And Death 131 

with religion in rags, as well as religion in silver 
slippers." 

By-ends: "You must not try to make me do 
what you say ; let me be free to please myself, and 
let me go with you." 

Christian : " Not a step farther, unless you do as 
I say." 

Then said By-ends, " I will never give up my old 
ways. They are harmless and pay well. If I can- 
not go with you, I must do as I did before I met 
you, and go on alone." 

Now Christian and Hopeful left him, and went 
on before. But one of them, looking back, saw 
three men come up to By-ends. Their names were 
Mr. Hold-the- World, Mr. Money-love and Mr. 
Save-all, men that By-ends knew when they were 
all boys at school. 

Exposition 

Envy is so eager to denounce Christian and 
Faithful that he can hardly take time to get his 
breath. Yet, as his name tells us, he envies the 
very man of whom he swore that " he was one of 
the vilest men in our country." He said such 
things because he envied him. Men often envy 
Christians although they will not have the very 
things for which they envy them. To know that 
another has the best of it, and to love that which 
is worse makes the heart full of envy and misery. 

Superstition shows that there was a religion in 
Vanity Fair, but it made no claims on the heart, the 



132 Faithful's Trial 

conscience, or the mind. It was largely the creed 
of the Pharisees, and not unlike that of hundreds 
and thousands of to-day. Those who cry " Church " 
instead of "Christ," who put crucifix in place of 
cross, and seek a dead uniformity in place of a liv- 
ing unity. It degrades man to a level lower than 
the brutes that perish, heaps rubbish on the top of 
sublime truths, and buries them out of sight. There 
is even yet a great deal of superstition among the 
churches everywhere, an amount of " hay, wood and 
stubble " which is sad to think about. 

Pickthank is a very strange name. It means 
one who is so bad and cunning that he will try to 
win the favour of his powerful friends by telling 
vile lies about those they hate. 

He thus tries to pick up thanks. You hear him 
say that Faithful had spoken evil about all his rich 
and noble friends, and even about the judge him- 
self. These were shocking lies. But it pleased the 
judge to hear Pickthank say so. 

This trial shows how impossible it is to keep the 
favour of the carnal world. The world of evil de- 
mands that we give up our faith or leave the world. 
We cannot win them, and we must take care that 
they do not win us. 

Of Faithful it must be said that he was a giant 
in faith. He desired to show his love for his Lord 
by laying down his life for His sake. He was a 
man of a thousand. 

He had the face of a lion and won his crown in 
the flames. 



And Death 133 

While Faithful mounted up on wings as eagles, 
Christian must for a long time walk and not faint. 



Questions 

What did each witness say against Faithful ? 

Was Faithful allowed to defend himself ? 

How many men made up the jury ? 

What were their names ? 

What did they say was to be done with Faithful ? 

What kind of death did he die ? 

What was waiting to take Faithful up into 
heaven ? 

Where was Christian sent for a time ? 

Who helped him to escape ? 

Who went with Christian out of Vanity Fair ? 

What made Hopeful decide to be a pilgrim ? 

Whom did they overtake as they went ? 

Where did By-ends come from ? 

Who were his friends ? 

When did he like to follow religion ? 

Why did Christian and Faithful leave him 
behind ? 

What old school chums did By-ends meet ? 



XII 
THE FATE OF BY-ENDS AND HIS FEIENDS 

WHEN the friends had bade each other 
good-day, Mr. Money-love said to Mr. 
By-ends : " Who are they upon the 
road before us ? " For Christian and Hopeful were 
still in view. 

By-ends: "They are two far countrymen who 
are going on the pilgrim journey." 

Money-love: "Alas! Why did they not wait 
that we might have had them go with us ? " 

By-ends : " The men in front are so stiff, and so 
love their own ways, and do so little care for the 
opinions of others, that it does not matter how 
godly a man is, if he does not act as they think he 
should, they will not have him with them." 

Save-all : " That is bad ; but we read of some 
who are righteous overmuch. But tell me, what 
were the things wherein you did not agree ? " 

By-ends : " Why, they think it is their duty to 
go on in all weathers, and I am for waiting for 
wind and tide. They will risk all for God in a 
rush, while I will care to secure my life and estate. 
They are for holding their opinions even if all men 
are against them, but I am for religion when the 
times and my safety suit it. Then they are for re- 

i34 



And His Friends 135 

ligion when in rags, but I am for him when he 
walks in his golden slippers, in the sunshine, and 
with much praise." 

Mr. Hold-the- World : " Aye, you are right, good 
Mr. By-ends. He is but a fool who does not keep 
what he has. Let us be wise as serpents, and make 
hay while the sun shines. You see how the bee 
lies still in winter, and never stirs except when she 
can have profit with comfort. Abraham and 
Solomon grew rich in religion. And Job says that 
a good man shall lay up gold as dust." 

Mr. Money -love : " There is no need of any more 
words on this matter, for we have both Scripture 
and reason on our side." 

Mr. By-ends : " Friends, we are going on the 
pilgrim journey, and to pass the time, let me ask 
you a question. If a man, a minister, or a trades- 
man, etc., should see a way to get the good things 
of this life by becoming very full of zeal in some 
points of religion which he never troubled about 
before, may he not use these means to an end, and 
be a right honest man ? " 

Mr. Money-love : "I see what you mean, and 
will try to answer you. Let us speak of the minis- 
ter first. If he has a very small church, and has in 
his eye a better by far, and has a good chance of 
getting it, but to get it he must study much more, 
preach more often and more earnestly, and, because 
the people wish it, must change some of his prin- 
ciples, for my part I see no reason why he may not 
do this, if he has a call. Aye, and a great deal 



136 The Fate of By-ends 

more, and be an honest man. Why ? Because his 
desire of a large church is lawful, since it is set be- 
fore him by Providence ; so then he may get it if 
he can. 

" Besides, his desire after that church makes him 
study more, and be a more earnest preacher, and so 
makes him a better man. 

" Now, as for his changing some of his principles 
in order to please his people. This shows that he 
is of a self-denying nature, of a sweet and winning 
manner, and so more fit for the duties of a minister. 

" And now for the tradesman you spoke of. If 
such an one have but a poor business in the world, 
but by becoming religious he may mend his market, 
get a rich wife, and more and far better customers 
to his shop, I see no reason why this may not be 
done, because to become religious is good, no mat- 
ter what means a man takes to become so. 

" Nov is it wrong to get a rich wife, or more cus- 
tom to my shop. 

" Besides, the man that gets these things by be- 
coming religious, gets that which is good of them 
that are good, by becoming good himself. So, then, 
here is a good wife, and good customers, and good 
gain, and all by becoming religious, which itself is 
good. 

" So, to become religious to get all these things 
is a good and wise plan." 

This answer, made by Mr. Money-love to Mr. 
By-ends's question, highly pleased them all. They 
were so sure no one could deny it, that they went 



And His Friends 137 

on, and called after Christian and Hopeful, who 
were still within sight, in order that they might put 
the same question to them. 

So Christian and Hopeful stopped, and stood still 
till they came up to them. Then Mr. Hold-the- 
World put the question to Christian and his friend, 
and bade them answer it if they could. 

Then said Christian : " Even a babe in religion 
may answer ten thousand such questions. For if it 
is wrong to follow Christ for the sake of the loaves, 
how much more sinful is it to make Him and relig- 
ion a stalking-horse, in order to get and enjoy the 
world. We do not find any other than heathen, 
hypocrites, devils and witches that are of this 
opinion. 

" For when Hamor and Shechem had a desire for 
the daughter and cattle of Jacob, and saw there 
was no other way for them to get their desires but 
by becoming religious, they tried this plan, but 
miserably failed. 1 

" Judas was also of this religion. He was relig- 
ious for the bag, so that he might have what was 
in it. But he was lost, cast away, and became the 
very son of perdition. 

" Simon, the wizard, was of this religion also, 
for he desired to have the Holy Spirit that he might 
make money ; but he had a terrible judgment. 2 

" Now a man who takes up religion for the world 
will throw it away for the world." 

At this answer they stood staring at one another, 

1 Gen. xxxiv. 20-24. 2 Acts viii. 18-22. 



138 The Fate of By-ends 

but did not know what to say. Hopeful said he 
thought Christian was right, so there was a great 
silence among them. 

Mr. By-ends walked more slowly, and fell behind 
with his friends. Christian and Hopeful went for- 
ward, and Christian said, "If these men cannot 
stand before the word of men, what will they do 
before the sentence of God ? " 

Now the pilgrims came to a delicate plain called 
Ease, where they went with much content, but that 
plain was short, so they got quickly over it. At 
the farther side of that plain was a little hill called 
Lucre, and in that hill a silver mine, which some of 
them who had gone that way, because it was so 
rare a sight, had turned aside to see. But going 
too near the brink of the pit, the ground gave way, 
and they had fallen in and were slain. Some also, 
who had been hurt there could not, to their dying 
day, be the same again. 

Then there stood, a little off the way, just beside 
the silver mine, a man named Demas, who called on 
the pilgrims to come and see, and said to Christian : 
" Ho ! turn aside here, and I will show you some- 
thing ! " 

Christian : " What is so important as to turn us 
out of the way to see it ? " 

Demas : " Here is a silver mine, and some men 
digging in it for silver. If you will come, with a 
little trouble you may become very rich." 

Hopeful ; " Let us go and see." 

Christian : " Not I. I have heard of this 



And His Friends 139 

place before now, and how many have been slain 
here." 

Then Christian called to Demas, saying : " Is not 
the place full of danger ? " 

Demas : " Not so very full of danger, except to 
those who are careless " — but he blushed when he 
spoke. 

Christian then said to Hopeful : " Let us not stir 
a step, but still keep on our way." 

Demas called again : " Will you not come over 
and see ? " 

Christian sharply answered, saying : " Demas, 
thou art an enemy to the right ways of the Lord 
of this way. You have already been condemned 
for turning aside, and why do you seek to bring us 
into the same trouble ? " * 

Demas cried again, saying he was also a pilgrim, 
and if they would wait a little he would go with 
them. 

Christian : " What is thy name ? Is it not what 
I have called you ? " 

Demas: "Yes, I am Demas. I am a son of 
Abraham." 

Christian : " I know you. Gehazi was your 
great-grandfather and Judas your father, and you 
have walked in their steps. It is but a devilish 
trick you are playing. Your father was hanged, 
and you deserve no better reward." 2 

By this time By-ends and his friends were come 

1 2 Tim. iv. 10. 

2 2 Kings v. 20-27 ; Matt. xxvi. 14, 15; xxvii. 3-5. 



140 The Fate of By-ends 

again within sight, and at the first call they went 
over to Demas. 

Now, whether they fell into the pit looking over 
the edge, or whether they went down to dig, or 
whether they were choked in the bottom by the 
damps, is not certain. But they were never seen 
again in the way. 

Exposition 
By-ends stands for a double-faced and two- 
tongued man. He is said to be going to the 
Celestial City, yet will not tell his name. His 
speech is fair, for he comes from the town of Fair- 
speech. Yet he is always swayed by sordid and 
mean motives, and the love of this present world. 
He floats down-stream all the time, or warms him- 
self in the sunshine. Yet he has always Scripture 
at his hand to prove his is the right way. We see 
how men can make the Word of God serve even an 
evil use, and by it try to prove that what they do 
is right. By-ends and his friends may live in our- 
selves. " Oh," said one, " I have seen Mr. By-ends 
too often in my own heart, and it has made my 
face turn scarlet when I lifted it to Christ and saw 
Him looking on me." By-ends and his friends lived 
only for themselves, not for God. They were al- 
ways willing to do evil that good might come of it. 
The fate of By-ends and his friends soon follows. 
He and they cannot pass the silver mine. Their 
hearts are drawn on by money, and not held back 
by God. To save their lives they lost them. 



And His Friends 141 

Many a man buries himself under a heap of gold 
or silver. The love of money sinks a man down to 
the uttermost depths. 



Questions 

What question did By-ends put to his friends ? 

Who answered it, and what did he say ? 

Did his answer please By-ends and his friends ? 

Did he put the question to any one else ? 

How did Christian answer it ? 

What effect had Christian's answer on By-ends 
and his friends ? 

What was the name of the plain Christian and 
Hopeful passed through ? 

Who next spoke to Christian and Faithful ? 

What was the name of the hill they saw ? 

What did Demas want the pilgrims to do ? 

What was in the mine ? 

Did Christian and Hopeful turn aside for the 
treasure ? 

What became of By-ends and his friends ? 



XIII 
BY-PATH MEADOW 

JUST on the other side of the plain called Ease 
the pilgrims came to a place where stood 
a monument, hard by the highway side. At 
the sight of it they were both moved, because it 
was of a strange form. It seemed to them as if it 
had been a woman changed into a pillar. Here 
they stood, looking and looking upon it, but could 
not tell what it was. At last Hopeful saw a strange 
writing above the head of the monument, but he, 
being no scholar, could not read it. He called to 
Christian, for he was learned, to see if he could 
pick out the meaning. So he came, and after put- 
ting the letters side by side he found it read 

" REMEMBER LOT'S WIFE." 

Then they concluded that this was the pillar of 
salt into which Lot's wife was turned for looking 
back when she was leaving Sodom in safety. 1 

Then said Christian to his friend, " Ah, brother, 
this sight comes at the proper time — just after the 
wicked wish of Demas, that we should come over 
and see Hill Lucre. And had we gone over we 
would, for all we know, have become like this 
woman, a sight for those who come after to see." 
1 Gen. xix. 26. 
142 



By-path Meadow 143 

Hopeful : " I am sorry that I was so foolish, 
and wonder that I am not now like Lot's wife ; for 
what was the difference between her sin and mine ? 
She only looked back, but I desired to go and see. 
Let grace be adored, and let me be ashamed that 
ever such a thing should be in my heart." 

Christian : " Let us take notice of what we see 
here. This woman, Lot's wife, escaped one danger 
and fell into another. For she escaped from Sodom 
when it was being destroyed, yet she was turned 
into a pillar of salt." 

Hopeful : " True, she may be both a caution and 
an example. Above all, I wonder at one thing : how 
Demas and his friends can stand yonder and look for 
treasure, when this woman, because she only looked 
back, was turned into a pillar of salt. And the 
death which overtook her made her an example, 
within sight of where they are ; for they must see 
her if they will but lift their eyes and look." 

Christian : " It is a thing to wonder at, and it 
proves that their hearts are grown very wicked. I 
cannot tell whom to compare them to so fitly, as to 
them that pick pockets in the presence of the judge, 
or that will cut purses under the gallows." 

Hopeful: "No doubt what you say is true. 
But what a mercy that neither you nor I have not 
also been made an example." 

As they went on their way they came to a pleasant 
river, which David, the king, called " the river of 
God," but John " the river of the water of life." ' 
1 Ps. lxv. 9 ; Rev. xxii. 1 ; Ezek. xlvii. 1, 9. 



144 By-path Meadow 

Now their way lay just along the bank of the river. 
Here, therefore, Christian and his companion walked 
with great delight. They drank also of the water 
of the river, which was pleasant and cheering to 
their weary spirits. Besides, on the banks of this 
river, on either side, were green trees that bore all 
manner of fruit. With this fruit they were much 
delighted ; and the leaves, they found, were good 
to cure the diseases which attack pilgrims on their 
journey. On either side of the river was also a 
meadow, made very beautiful with lilies, and it was 
green all the year round. In this meadow they lay 
down and slept, for here they might lie down in 
safety. 1 When they awoke they gathered again of 
the fruit of the trees, drank again of the water of 
the river, and then lay down again to sleep. This 
they did for several days and nights. 

So when they were ready to go on — for they 
were not yet at their journey's end — they ate and 
drank and departed. 

Now, they had not gone far but the river and 
the way for a time parted, at which they were a 
little sorry ; but they dare not go out of the way, 
although the path from the river was rough, and 
their feet were tender, by reason of their travels. 
Thus the souls of the pilgrims were much discour- 
aged by reason of the way. 2 Wherefore, as they 
went on, they wished for a better way. 

Now, a little before them, there was on the left 
hand of the road a meadow, and a stile leading to 

1 Ps. xxiii. 2 ; Isa. xiv. 30. 2 Num. xxi. 4. 



By-path Meadow 145 

it over the wall, and that meadow is called By-path 
Meadow. 

Then said Christian : " If that meadow lies along 
by our wayside, let us go over into it." 

Then he went to the stile to see, and behold ! a 
path lay on the other side of the fence. " It is 
just as I wished," said Christian. " Here is the 
easier way ; come, good Hopeful, let us go over." 

Hopeful : " But what if this path should lead us 
out of the way ? " 

Christian : " It is not likely that it will. Look, 
do you not see that it goes along by the wayside ? " 

So Hopeful, being persuaded by Christian, went 
over the stile after him. When they were gone 
over, and got to the path, they found it very easy 
to the feet. Looking before them, they saw a man 
walking as they did, whose name was Yain Con- 
fidence. So they called after him, and asked him 
where that way led. He answered, "To the 
Celestial Gate." 

" Look," said Christian, " did I not tell you so ? 
By this you may see we are right." So they 
followed, and he went before them. But the night 
came on, and it grew very dark, so that Christian 
and Faithful lost sight of Yain Confidence. Being 
in the front, and not seeing his way before him, 
Yain Confidence fell into a deep pit, which was put 
just at that place by the prince of those grounds to 
catch vain-glorious fools, and was dashed to pieces 
by his fall. 1 

1 Isa. ix. 16. 



146 By-path Meadow 

Now Christian and Faithful heard him fall. So 
they called out to know what was the matter, but 
no one answered, only they heard a groaning. 

Then said Hopeful, " Where are we now ? " 

But Christian was silent, knowing he had led 
him out of the way. And now it began to rain, 
and thunder, and lighten in a very dreadful manner, 
and the water rose fast. 

Then Hopeful groaned in himself, saying, " Oh, 
that I had kept on my way ! " 

Christian : " Who would have thought that this 
path would lead us out of the way ? " 

Hopeful : "I was afraid of it from the very first, 
and therefore gave you that gentle hint. I would 
have spoken plainer, but you are older than I." 

Christian : " Good brother, be not offended ; I 
am sorry I have brought you out of the way, and that 
I have put you into such danger. Pray, brother, 
forgive me. I did not do it for any evil purpose." 

Hopeful : "Be comforted, my brother, for I do 
forgive you, and believe, too, that this shall be 
for our good." 

Christian : " I am glad you are so merciful ; but 
we must not stand still. Let us try to go back 
again." 

Hopeful : " But, good brother, let me go in front." 

Christian : " No, if you please, let me go first, 
that if there is any danger I may be the first to 
meet it. It was by my efforts that we are both 
gone out of the way." 

Hopeful : " No, you shall not go first, for your 



By-path Meadow 147 

mind, being troubled, may lead you out of the 
way." 

Then, to cheer them, they heard a voice, saying, 
" Set thine heart towards the highway ; even to the 
way which thou went est, turn again." ' 

But by this time the waters were very high, and 
the way back was dangerous. It is very much 
easier going out of the way than going back to it 
again. Yet they tried to go back, but it was so 
dark, and the flood so high, that in trying to get 
back they were almost drowned, nine or ten times. 

Nor could they, with all the skill they had, get 
to the stile that night. So at last, coming upon a 
little shelter, they sat down there until the day 
should break, but, being weary, they fell asleep. 

Exposition 
We see, from this story of the pilgrim's progress, 
that the life of a Christian is not the life of a 
traveller whose eyes are filled every day with some 
fresh scene of wonder and beauty, but rather the 
life of a soldier in time of war, face to face with 
foes, who retire only for a short time to get their 
breath and gather strength for the next attack. 
The life of a Christian is as varied as an April day. 
At one moment the sun shines brightly, and he 
goes forward singing like a bird ; at the next the 
clouds gather, the raindrops fall, and the songs are 
changed to sounds of grief and pain. This is the 
common lot ; but the cause of all this change is in 

1 Jer. xxxi. 21. 



148 By-path Meadow 

ourselves. God does not change. This chapter 
tells us, near the beginning, of a river of God, and 
ends with the pilgrims far away from the narrow 
way. There came a time when the river and the 
way parted, after the pleasant rest and joy beside 
the river of life. The way seemed rough and 
painful, and the pilgrims wished for an easier way. 
We are always in danger of turning from the 
straight road, and wishing the Christian life was 
easier and less difficult. By-path Meadow was 
much pleasanter than the way of life. There they 
followed one who seemed to know the road, who 
said it led to the Celestial Gate. But this leader, 
Yain Confidence, fell into a deep pit. All paths 
are crooked paths but God's way. All the sorrow 
and pain which here came to Christian and Faith- 
ful were the result of sin. They brought it on 
themselves. 



Thou art the Way, the Truth, the Life, 
And hearts that, with presumption rife, 
Would seek through other means of gain, 
Light, Truth and Life, but toil in vain." 



Eemember, also, that great spiritual joy and 
peace may be followed by great spiritual failure 
and doubt, if we refuse the call to stern and un- 
pleasant duty. If we love the way of salvation 
when it runs beside the river of God, but look for 
a by-path when the road becomes hard and stony, 
we are likely to get what we seek. But we are 



By-path Meadow 149 

not to wonder if afterwards we suffer misery and 
pain because we sought an easy way. 



Questions 

What did the pilgrims see on the highway side ? 
What was the monument like ? 
What was written on it, and who read it ? 
What did King David call the river ? 
What kind of flowers grew in the meadows ? 
What made them turn into By-path Meadow ? 
How did they get into it ? 
Whom did they meet there ? 
What became of Yain Confidence ? 
How did the pilgrims pass the night after losing 
their way ? 



XIV 
GIANT DESPAIK AND DOUBTING CASTLE 

NOW there was, not far from where they 
lay, a castle, called Doubting Castle, the 
owner of which was Giant Despair, and 
it was on his grouuds they were now sleeping. 

When the Giant got up in the early morning, 
and went for a walk up and down his fields, he 
found Christian and Hopeful asleep in his grounds. 

Then, with a grim and surly voice, he bade them 
awake and asked them where they came from and 
what they were doing in his grounds. They told 
him they were pilgrims, and had lost their way. 
Then said the Giant, " You have this night been 
trespassers, by trampling in and lying on my 
grounds, and so you must go along with me." 
They had to go with him, for he was stronger than 
they. They also had but little to say, for they 
knew the fault was theirs. The Giant, therefore, 
drove them before him into his castle and put them 
into a very dark cell, nasty and stinking to the 
spirits of these two men. Here they lay from 
Wednesday morning until Saturday night, without 
one bit of bread, one drop of drink, or any to ask 
how they were. They were in a very bad fix, and 
were far from friends and comrades. 1 

1 Ps. lxxxviii. 18. 

150 



Doubting Castle 151 

In this place Christian had double sorrow, be- 
cause it was through his advice that they were 
brought into this trouble. 

Now Giant Despair had a wife, whose name was 
Diffidence. So when he was gone to bed he told 
his wife what he had done, to wit, that he had 
taken a couple of prisoners and cast them into a 
cell for trespassing on his grounds. Then he asked 
her what else he ought to do to them. So she 
asked him who they were, where they came from, 
and where they were going, and he told her. Then 
she advised him that when he rose in the morning 
he should beat them without mercy. So when he 
arose he got a terrible crab-tree cudgel and went 
down to the cell where they were. He first began 
to scold them as if they were dogs, although they 
never replied to him. Then he fell on them and 
beat them fearfully, so that they could not defend 
themselves or even turn on the floor. This done, 
he withdrew and left them to make the best of 
their misery, and to mourn under their grief. So 
all that day they spent the time in sighs and bitter 
words of sorrow. The next night Diffidence, talk- 
ing to her husband about them, and learning that 
they were still alive, advised Giant Despair to tell 
the pilgrims to destroy -themselves. So when 
morning was come he went to them in a surly 
manner as before. And seeing that they were very 
sore with the beating he had given them, he told 
them that, as they were never likely to come out of 
that place alive, the only way was to make an end 



152 Giant Despair and 

of themselves, either with knife, or rope, or poison. 
" For why," said he, " should you live when there 
is so much sorrow and pain ? " But they desired 
him to let them go. With that he gave them an 
ugly look and rushed on them, and would doubtless 
have made an end of them himself, but that he fell 
into one of his fits — for he sometimes, in sunshiny 
weather, fell into fits — and lost the use of his 
hands. So he withdrew and left them as before to 
think of what they ought to do. Then did Chris- 
tian and Hopeful talk the matter over, whether it 
was best to take Giant Despair's advice or not, and 
thus they began : 

Christian : " Brother, what shall we do ? The 
life we now live is miserable. For my part, I know 
not what is best, whether to live thus, or to die at 
once. ' My soul chooseth strangling rather than 
life, and the grave is more easy for me than this 
cell.' x Shall we be advised by the Giant ? " 

Hopeful : " Indeed, our present position is dread- 
ful, and I would rather die than to live like this. 
Yet let us consider. The Lord of the country to 
which we are going hath said, ' Thou shalt do no 
murder,' so we must not kill another person nor 
yet ourselves. Besides, he that kills another can 
but commit murder upon his body, but he who 
kills himself destroys both body and soul at once. 
Moreover, my friend, you talk of ease in the grave, 
but have you forgotten the hell to which murderers 
are certain to go ? And let us consider again that 

1 Job vii. 15. 



Doubting Castle 153 

all the law of the land is not in the hand of Giant 
Despair. Others, so far as I can learn, have been 
taken by him, and yet have escaped from him. 
Who knows but that God may cause Giant Despair 
to die? Or that he may have another of his 
fainting fits and lose the power of his limbs. And 
if that should happen again, I am resolved to pluck 
up the heart of a man and try my utmost to get 
out of his reach. I was a fool that I did not try to 
do it before ; but, my brother, let us be patient and 
endure a while." 

With these words Hopeful calmed the mind of 
Christian. So they remained all that day in the 
dark in their sad and doleful condition. 

Well, towards evening the Giant goes down into 
the cell again to see if his prisoners had taken his 
advice. But when he came he found them alive, 
and, indeed, alive was all ; for now, what for want 
of bread and water, and on account of the wounds 
they received when he had beaten them, they could 
do little but breathe. But he found them alive, at 
which he fell into a terrible rage, and told them 
that, as they had not taken his advice, it would 
be worse for them than if they had never been 
bcrn. 

At this they trembled greatly, and Christian fell 
into a fainting fit. But when he came a little to 
himself they talked again about the advice the 
Giant had given them, and whether they had best 
take it or not. 

Now Christian again seemed ready to do so, but 



1^4 Giant Despair and 

Hopeful replied again, saying, "My brother, re- 
member how brave you have already been. Apol- 
lyon could not crush you, nor could all you saw, 
heard or felt in the Valley of the Shadow of Death. 
And now you are full of nothing but fear ! You 
see that I am in the cell with you, a far weaker 
man by nature than you are. And this Giant has 
wounded me as well as you, and has also cut off 
the bread and water from my mouth, and with you 
I mourn the darkness. But let us wait a little 
longer. Remember how you played the man at 
Vanity Fair. You were not afraid of the chain, 
the cage, nor yet of bloody death." 

Now night being come again, Mrs. Diffidence 
once more asked the Giant about the prisoners, and 
if they had taken his advice, to which he replied, 
" They are sturdy rogues ; they would rather bear 
all pain than take their own lives." Then said she, 
" Take them into the castle yard, and show them 
the bones and skulls of those whom you have al- 
ready killed, and make them believe that before a 
week is gone you will tear them in pieces, as you 
have done with those who came before them." 

So when morning was come the Giant goes to 
them again, and takes them into the castle yard, 
and shows them the bones and skulls. "These," 
said he, " once were pilgrims as you are ; and they 
trespassed in my grounds, as you have done, and 
when I saw fit I tore them in pieces. And within 
ten days I will do the same to you. Go to your 
den again." And so saying he beat them all the 




IN THE DUNGEON OF GIANT DESPAIR 
Here, then, they lay from Wednesday morning till Saturday night 
without one lit of oread, or drop of drink, or light. 



Doubting Castle 1 55 

way there. They lay thus all Saturday in as sad a 
fix as before. 

Now, when night was come, Mrs. Diffidence and 
her husband talked again about the prisoners. The 
old Gaint wondered very much that he could not, 
with his blows or advice, bring them to death. 
His wife replied, saying, " I fear they live in hope 
that some one will relieve them, or that they have 
pick-locks about them, by the means of which they 
hope to escape." 

" Do you say so, my dear ? " said the Giant. " I 
will surely search them in the morning." 

On Saturday, about midnight, the pilgrims began 
to pray, and continued in prayer till almost the 
break of day. 

Now, just before daybreak, good Christian, as 
one amazed, broke out into this passionate speech : 
" What a fool I am to lie thus in this stinking cell 
when I may walk at liberty ! I have a key in my 
bosom, called Promise, that will, I am sure, open 
any lock in Doubting Castle." 

Then said Hopeful, " That is good news. Pull 
it out of your bosom and try ! " 

Then Christian pulled it out, and began to try 
the cell door, whose bolt, as he turned the key, 
gave back and the door flew open with ease. So 
Christian and Hopeful both came out. Then he 
went to the outward door that leads to the castle 
yard, and with his key opened that door also. 
After that he went to the iron gate, for that must 
be opened also. That lock was very stiff, but the 



156 Giant Despair and 

key did open it. Then they pushed open the gate 
to escape with all speed, but the gate made such a 
noise as it opened that it wakened Giant Despair. 
The Giant rose at once to pursue his prisoners, but 
he felt his limbs to fail, for one of his fits came on, so 
that he could not go after them. Then Christian 
and Hopeful went on, and came to the King's high- 
way, and so were safe, because they were out of 
his power. 

Now, when they were gone over the stile, they 
wondered what they should do to prevent those 
pilgrims who came after them from falling into the 
hands of Giant Despair. So they agreed to erect a 
pillar there, and to write on one side these words : 
"Over this stile is the way to Doubting Castle, 
which is kept by Giant Despair, who hates the 
King of the Celestial Country, and seeks to destroy 
his holy pilgrims. " 

Many pilgrims, therefore, that followed after 
read what was written and escaped the danger. 
This done, the pilgrims sang : 

" Out of the way we went, and hence we found 
What 'twas to tread upon forbidden ground ; 
And let them that come after have a care, 
Lest heedlessness makes them, as we, to fare, 
Lest they for trespassiDg his prisoners are, 
Whose castle's Doubting, and whose name's 
Despair." 

Exposition 
It is after going astray that Christians fall into 
sleep in the night of spiritual darkness. This is the 



Doubting Castle 157 

sleep of the soul which forgets to watch and pray, 
and is a guilty slumber. When we settle down in 
worldly security and cease to trust God for all 
things we are not far from Doubting Castle and 
Giant Despair. For Doubting Castle is simply the 
castle of doubts, and when we doubt God's good- 
ness and love and think He has forgotten us we are 
just in a cell of the castle, and, sooner or later, will 
be visited by Giant Despair. His wife, Mrs. Diffi- 
dence, was as bad as he. Her name means " want 
of faith." So despair and want of faith go to- 
gether. Giant Despair can give only one kind of 
advice, and that the very worst. He says to the 
pilgrims, "End your lives, since you can't mend 
them." He can only show the very worst of sights 
— the bones and skulls of other pilgrims. That is 
to say, he shows nothing but the seamy side of life 
— the failures and suicides. Thousands and thou- 
sands of men and women have heeded Despair's 
advice, and ended their lives. 

But Christian and Hopeful know God, and are 
saved from such an end by the thoughts of the 
Lord which come to them in their dark hour. 
Then they began to pray and continued in prayer 
till dawn of day. Saul and Judas were torn to 
pieces by Giant Despair. Both took his advice, 
and made " an end of themselves." David, Peter 
and Thomas only escaped by the Key of Promise. 
Light begins to come when we continue in prayer, 
for day dawned while the pilgrims were still on 
their knees. Then they recalled the Key of 



158 Giant Despair 

Promise in Christian's bosom ; for that key is just 
the " exceeding precious promises " which are found 
in the Bible, and which are all yea and amen in 
Christ Jesus. Here is one : " Let him return unto 
the Lord, and He will have mercy upon him, and to 
our God, for He will abundantly pardon." 

" For the love of God is broader than the measure of 
man's mind, 
And the heart of the eternal is most wonderfully 
kind." 



Questions 

Who found the pilgrims asleep, and where did 
he take them ? 

What was the name of Giant Despair's wife ? 

What did she advise Giant Despair to do with 
the pilgrims ? 

Did he carry out her advice ? 

What did he tell the pilgrims to do to end their 
sufferings ? 

What happened to Giant Despair when he was 
about to kill them ? 

How did Christian and Hopeful cheer up one 
another ? 

What did the Giant show the pilgrims in the 
castle yard ? 

How did they spend Saturday night ? 

What did Christian find in his bosom ? 

Did it unlock all the doors ? 

Why could the Giant not follow them ? 

How did they advise other pilgrims ? 



XV 
THE DELECTABLE MOUNTAINS 

CHRISTIAN and Hopeful went on then 
till they came to the Delectable Moun- 
tains. These mountains belong to the 
lord of that hill of which we have spoken before. 
So they went up the mountains to behold the 
gardens, and orchards, the vineyards and fountains 
of water. There also they drank and rested them- 
selves, and did freely eat of the fruit in the vine- 
yards. 

Now there were on the tops of these mountains 
shepherds feeding their flocks, and they stood by 
the highway side. The pilgrims, therefore, went 
to them, and leaning on their staves, as is common 
with weary pilgrims when they stand to talk with 
any by the way, they asked, "Whose Delectable 
Mountains are these? And whose are the sheep 
that feed on them ? " 

Then answered the shepherds, " These mountains 
are Immanuel's Land, and they are within sight of 
his city; and the sheep also are his, and he laid 
down his life for them." 

Christian: "Is this the way to the Celestial 
City ? " 

Shepherd : " You are just on the way." 
i59 



160 The Delectable Mountains 

Christian : " How far is it away ? " 

Shepherd : " Too far for any but those who shall 
get there indeed." 

Christian : " Is the way safe or dangerous ? " 

Shepherd : " Safe for those for whom it is made 
safe, ' but transgressors shall err therein.' " * 

Christian : "Is there any relief in this place for 
pilgrims that are weary and faint in the way ? " 

Shepherd: "The lord of these mountains has 
given us a charge not to be * forgetful to entertain 
strangers.' " 2 

When the shepherds saw that the pilgrims were 
wayfaring men, they also put questions to them, 
to which the pilgrims made the usual replies. 
The questions were : " Where did you come from ? 
And how did you get into the way ? And by what 
means have you kept on ? For but few of them 
that set out on the pilgrim journey show their faces 
on these mountains." 

When the shepherds heard their answers, being 
very much pleased, they looked lovingly on them 
and said, " Welcome to the Delectable Mountains." 

The shepherds, whose names were Knowledge, 
Experience, Watchful and Sincere, took them by 
the hand and brought them to their tents. There 
they made them eat of what food was ready to 
hand. They said also, " We would have you stay 
here a while, that we may know each other, and 
even more, that you may comfort yourselves with 
the good things on these Delectable Mountains." 

1 Hosea xiv. 9. 2 Heb. xiii. 2. 



The Delectable Mountains 161 

The pilgrims said they were content to stay, and 
went to their rest that night, for it was very late. 

In the morning the shepherds called up Christian 
and Hopeful to walk with them on the mountains. 
So they went forth with them, and walked a while, 
having a pleasant view on every side. Then said 
the shepherds to one another, " Shall we show these 
pilgrims some wonders ? " 

So when they made up their minds to do so they 
brought them first to the top of a hill called Error, 
which was very steep on the farther side, and told 
the pilgrims to look down to the bottom. So 
Christian and Hopeful looked down, and saw at the 
bottom several men dashed to pieces by a fall that 
they had from the top. 

Then said Christian, " What does this mean ? " 

The shepherds said, "Have you not heard of 
those Avho were made to err, by listening to Hy- 
meneus and Philetus, as concerning the faith of the 
resurrection of the body ? " ' 

The pilgrims answered, " Yes." 

The shepherds then said, "Those that you see 
lying there dashed in pieces at the bottom of the 
hill are they. They remain to this day unburied, 
as you see, for an example .to others so that they 
fall not in the same way." 

Then they brought the pilgrims to the top of an- 
other mountain, and the name of that mountain is 
Caution. Then they bade them look afar off, which, 
when they did, they saw several men walking up 

1 2 Tim. ii. 17, 18. 



162 The Delectable Mountains 

and down among the tombs that were there, and 
they saw also that the men were blind, because they 
fell sometimes upon the tombs, and because they 
could not get away from them. 

Then said Christian, " What means this ? " 

The shepherds replied, " Did you not see a little 
below these mountains a stile, which led into a 
meadow, on the left hand of this way ? " 

The pilgrims said, " Yes." 

Then said the shepherds, " From that stile there 
goes a path that leads straight to Doubting Castle, 
which is kept by Giant Despair. And these," 
pointing to the men among the tombs, " came once 
on the pilgrim journey, even as you now do, and 
they reached that same stile. But because the 
right way was rough in that place, they wished to 
go out of the way into yonder meadow. There 
they were taken by Giant Despair and cast into 
Doubting Castle. After they had been kept a 
while in the cell he put out their eyes and led them 
among these tombs, where they wander to this 
day." 

Then Christian and Hopeful looked at one 
another, and the water stood in their eyes, but 
they said nothing to the shepherds. 

Then the shepherds brought them to another 
place in a hollow, where was a door in the side of 
a hill. They opened the door and bade the pil- 
grims look in. They did so, and saw that within 
it was very dark and smoky ; they also thought they 
heard sounds and cries. 



The Delectable Mountains 163 

Then said Christian, " What does this mean ? " 

The shepherds answered, "This is a byway to 
hell, a way that hypocrites follow." And they 
told the pilgrims of many who had gone that way. 

Then said Hopeful to the shepherds, " I think 
that these men were on the pilgrim journey even 
as we are." 

Shepherds : " Yes, and held it a long time, too." 

Hopeful: "How far might they go on in the 
journey in their day, since they were at last, in 
this sad fashion, cast away ? " 

Shepherds : " Some farther, and some not so far, 
as these mountains." 

By this time the pilgrims had a desire to go 
forward, and the shepherds agreed with them. So 
they walked together to the end of the mountains. 
Then said the shepherds one to another, " Let us 
show to the pilgrims the gates of the Celestial City, 
if they have skill to look through our glass." The 
pilgrims lovingly agreed; so they were taken to 
the top of a hill called Clear, and the glass was 
given them to look through. Then they tried to 
look, but the thought of the last thing that the 
shepherds had shown them made their hands shake, 
so that they could not look steadily through the 
glass ; but they thought they saw something like 
the gate, and also some of the glory of the place. 
When they were about to depart one of the shep- 
herds gave them a note of the way. Another bade 
them beware of the Flatterer. The third told them 
to take care that they did not sleep on the En- 



164 The Delectable Mountains 

chanted Ground. And the fourth bade them God- 
speed. 

Then the two pilgrims went down the mountains 
along the highway towards the city. Now a little 
way below these mountains, on the left hand, lies 
the country of Conceit. From this country there 
comes into the way in which the pilgrims walked 
a little crooked lane. Here they met a very lively 
man, who came from that country, whose name was 
Ignorance. So Christian asked him where he came 
from and where he was going. 

Ignorance : " Sir, I was born in the country that 
lieth off there a little on the left hand, and I am 
going to the Celestial City." 

Christian : " But how do you think you will get in 
at the gate ? A great many will have trouble there." 

Ignorance : " I know my Lord's will, and have 
been a good liver ; I pay every man his own. I 
pray, fast, pay money, and give to the poor, and 
have left my country for the place where I am 
going.'' 

Christian : " But why did you not come in at the 
wicket gate that is at the head of this way ? You 
came in through that crooked lane, and so I fear, 
however you may think of yourself, when the great 
day shall come, you will be called a thief and a 
robber, instead of being admitted into the city." 

Ignorance : " Gentlemen, you are strangers to 
me. I know you not. Be content to follow the 
religion of your country and I will follow mine. 
I hope all will be well." 



The Delectable Mountains 165 

When Christian saw that this man was " wise in 
his own conceit," he said to Hopeful, " ' There is 
more hope of a fool than of him.' ' Shall we go 
on with him, or shall we pass him by for the pres- 
ent, and let him think of what he has heard from 
us and join him again later on ? " 

Hopeful : " It is not good to tell him all at once. 
Let us pass on, and we can talk to him again if he 
is able to bear it." So they went on, and left Igno- 
rance behind. 

Exposition 
The young reader will remember that Christian 
was shown from the top of the House Beautiful the 
Delectable Mountains, Immanuel's Land, with all 
its beauties and delights. And his fair friends had 
stirred his heart by telling him that from the De- 
lectable Mountains he could get a sight of the gate 
of the city. Now when the pilgrims came to these 
mountains they found far more to make them happy 
than they had even thought of, or ever been told. 
Here they ate the best fruits of Christian living, and 
those are the best things known in this life. The 
three great words in this chapter are Abundance, 
Fellowship, Caution. There was abundance of all 
that made life worth living. With what joy they 
entered this lovely spot, after the horrors of the 
scenes they had lately passed through ! From the 
gloom of Giant Despair and Doubting Castle to the 
bracing air, clear atmosphere, and scenes of peace, 

1 Prov. xxvi. 12. 



166 The Delectable Mountains 

where the shepherds stand beside their flocks, was 
something never to be forgotten. And to hear the 
kind welcome to Immanuel's Land, the home of 
peace, love and beauty ! These mountains picture 
forth those calm and happy moments when the 
ripening soul has no cloud between it and God, 
and feels how real and true is that trust in Christ 
which can bring such sunshine into the heart. 



" Then all is peace and light, 

This soul within ; 
Thus shall I walk with Thee, 

The loved unseen ; 
Leaning on Thee, my God, 
Guided along the road, 

Nothing between. " 



The four shepherds are careful to give the pil- 
grims every help, and to supply every need, and to 
be sweet companions during their stay in the moun- 
tains. Do not these shepherds, Watchful, Knowl- 
edge, Experience and Sincere, tell us what are the 
qualities of a true minister of Jesus Christ, the 
marks of those pastors who feed the flock in Im- 
manuePs Land ? With these Christian and Hopeful 
have sweet communion, and are taught many lessons. 
Caution is the great word which covers all they saw 
and learned. They were to be careful even now, 
although they had so many present joys, and had 
seen the gate of the city afar off. The hill called 
Error teaches how men may leave the path of God's 
Holy Word to their ruin. Seeking light every- 



The Delectable Mountains 167 

where else, they end in darkness and sin. Mount 
Caution shows how busy the enemy of souls is ; if 
he can tempt us astray, we may wander and become 
quite blind to all the glories of the spiritual life. 

The door in the side of the hill is a most awfully 
solemn lesson on sham religion. It is thus possible 
for men to suffer the pains and profess the faith of 
Christianity, and yet pass right on to their doom. 
If such have not love it profits them nothing, even 
though they profess all things, and say, " Lord, 
Lord." 

The hill called Clear tells of that clear and strong 
faith which enables the eye of the soul to see 
through the mists of this life to the gate of the city 
and the glories around it. Most of us, like the pil- 
grim, through want of faith, see only dimly. Few 
can say, like the holy Payson, " The Celestial City 
is full in view — its glories beam upon me — its 
breezes fan me— its odours are wafted to me — its 
music strikes upon my ear, and its spirit breathes 
into my heart. Nothing separates but the river of 
death, and that appears but a narrow rill which 
may be crossed by a single step." 

The pilgrims met with Ignorance when far down 
the mountainside. Ignorance is a very common 
sort of pilgrim, one who prefers the crooked way 
to the straight ; who says he knows his lord's will, 
but does not do it ; who rests on what he does to 
save his soul, but not on what Christ has done. 
There is very little hope for such men, unless they 
change their way ; although they " hope all will be 



168 The Delectable Mountains 

well," and thank God they are not as other men 
are. 

Questions 

To whom did the Delectable Mountains belong ? 

What did the pilgrims ask the shepherds ? 

What did the shepherds tell them ? 

What were the names of the shepherds ? 

What were Christian and Hopeful shown in the 
morning ? 

What was the name of the first hill ? 

What was the fate of those who fell over into 
the bottom ? 

What was the name of the second hill ? 

What happened to the blind men ? 

What did they see through the door in the side 
of the hill ? 

What did they see on the top of a hill called 
Clear ? 

Whom did they meet from the country of 
Conceit ? 

How did Ignorance hope to get to the Celestial 
City? 



XYI 

LITTLE FAITH, THE FLATTERER, ATHEIST 
AND ENCHANTED GROUND 

SO they went on, and Christian told Hopeful 
the following tale : 
" I remember," said he, " what was told 
me about a good man who lived here in this part of 
the country. The name of the man was Little 
Faith. He was a good man, and he dwelt in the 
town of Sincere. This is what took place : At the 
entering in at this passage there comes down from 
Broadway Gate a lane, called Deadman's Lane, so 
called because of the murders which are done there. 
And this Little Faith, going on the pilgrim journey, 
chanced to sit down there and fell asleep. Now at 
that time there came down the lane from Broad- 
way Gate three sturdy rogues, and their names 
were Faint-heart, Mistrust and Guilt, three brothers, 
and they, seeing Little Faith where he was, came 
galloping up with speed. Now the good man had 
just awakened from his sleep, and was getting up 
to go on his journey. So they all came up to him, 
and with angry words told him to stand still. At 
this Little Faith became as white as a rag, and had 
neither power to fight nor fly. Then said Faint- 
heart, ' Give up your purse.' But he made no 
haste to do it, for he did not want to lose his 
money. Mistrust ran up to him, and, putting his 

169 



170 Little Faith, the Flatterer, 

hand into his pocket, pulled out a bag of silver. 
Then Little Faith cried out, ' Thieves ! Thieves ! ' 
With that Guilt, with a great club that was in his 
hand, struck Little Faith on the head and felled 
him flat on the ground, where he lay bleeding as if 
he would die. All this time the thieves stood by. 
But at last, hearing some people on the road, they 
took to their heels, and left the poor, wounded man 
to look after himself. After a while Little Faith 
came to himself, and, rising up, tried his best to 
struggle on his way. This was the story." 

Hopeful : " But did they take from him all that 
he had ? " 

Christian : " No, they did not find his jewels, 
so he kept these still. Also he had a little money 
left, but scarce enough to bring him to his journey's 
end, and had to beg as he went to keep himself 
alive." 1 

Hopeful : " But is it not a wonder they did not 
take his certificate, by which he was to be ad- 
mitted at the Celestial Gate ? " 

Christian : " It is a wonder ; but it was God who 
watched over him, and so they did not take that 
precious thing." 2 

Hopeful : " But he must have been glad that 
they did not take his jewels." 

Christian : " He might have been glad, only he 
could not forget the loss of his money, and this 
made him think less of his jewels, so he did not en- 
joy them nor value them as he should have done." 
1 1 Peter iv. 18. 2 2 Tim. i. 12, 14 ; 1 Peter i. 5-9. 



Atheist and Enchanted Ground 1 7 1 

Thus they talked as they went on till they came 
to a place where a way put itself into their way, 
and seemed to go as straight as the way they should 
go. Here they knew not which of the two to take, 
for both seemed straight before them. Therefore, 
here they stood still to think. And as they were 
thinking about the way a man, black of flesh, but 
covered with a very light robe, came to them and 
asked them why they stood there. They said they 
were going to the Celestial City, but knew not 
which way to go. 

" Follow me," said the man ; " it is there I am 



j) 



So they followed him in the way that came but 
now into the road, which by degrees turned, and 
turned again, until their faces were turned away 
from the city. Still they followed him. But by 
and by, before they knew it, he led them into the 
meshes of a net. JSTow they were so entangled that 
they knew not what to do, and with that the robe 
fell off the black man's face. Then they saw where 
they were. So they lay crying there for some time, 
for they could not get out. 

Christian said to Hopeful, " Now I do see my 
mistake. Did not the shepherd tell us to beware 
of the Flatterer ? " 

Hopeful : " They also gave us a note of direc- 
tions about the way, so that we might be sure of 
it. But we forgot to read it, and so went into the 
paths of the evil one." 

Thus they lay groaning in the net. At last they 



172 Little Faith, the Flatterer, 

saw a Shining One coming to them, with a whip of 
small cords in his hand. He came up to them and 
asked them what they were doing there, where 
they came from, and where they were going. 
They told him they were poor pilgrims going to 
Zion, but were led out of their way by a black man, 
clothed in white. Then said the Shining One, " It 
is the Flatterer, a false apostle, who has changed 
himself into an angel of light." 1 So he rent the net 
and let the men out. Then he said, " Follow me, 
that I may set you again on your way." So he led 
them back to the way they had left to follow the 
Flatterer. Then he asked them, " Where did you 
sleep last night?" They said, "With the shep- 
herds upon the Delectable Mountains." " Did not 
the shepherds give you a note of direction for the 
way ? " said he. They replied, " Yes." " Did you 
take it out and read it when you were in doubt 
which way to take ? " asked he. They said, " No." 
" Why ? " said he. They said they forgot. " Did 
not the shepherds warn you against the Flatterer ? " 
said he. They replied, " Yes ; but we did not think 
such a fine-spoken man was he." 2 So he made 
them lie down and beat them sore to teach them to 
walk in the good way, 3 and said, " As many as I 
love, I rebuke and chasten." 4 Then he bade them 
go on their way and take good heed to the other 
directions of the shepherds. 
Now, after a while, the pilgrims saw in the dis- 

1 2 Cor. xi. 13,14. 2 Rom. xvi. 17, 18. 

3 Deut. xxv. 2 ; 2 Chron. vi. 27. * Rev. iii. 19. 






Atheist and Enchanted Ground 173 

tance one coming along the highway to meet them. 
Then said Christian to Hopeful, " Yonder is a man 
with his back towards Zion, and he is coming to 
meet us." 

Hopeful : "I see him. Let us take heed to our- 
selves now, lest he should be a flatterer too." So he 
drew nearer and nearer and at last came up with 
them. His name was Atheist, and he asked them 
where they were going. 

Christian : " We are going to Mount Zion." 

Then Atheist fell into a great burst of laughter. 

Christian: "What is the meaning of your 
laughter ? " 

Atheist : "I laugh to see what ignorant persons 
you are to go on such a journey, when you shall 
have nothing for all your toil." 

Christian: "Why, man, do you think we shall 
not be welcomed ? " 

Atheist : " Welcomed ! Why, there is no such 
place as you dream of in all this world." 

Christian : " But there is in the world to come." 

Atheist: " When I was at home I heard of what 
you now declare, and because of what I heard I 
went out to see for myself, and have been seeking 
this city for twenty years, but find no more of it 
than I did at the first." l 

Christian : " We have heard and we believe that 
there is such a place to be found." 

Atheist: " And did I not when at home believe 
also and come thus far to find the city ? But find- 

1 Eocl. x. 15 ; Jer. xvii. 15. 



174 Little Faith, the Flatterer, 

ing none, I am going back again. Had there been 
such a place I should have found it, for I have gone 
farther than you. And when I get back I will en- 
joy the things I then cast away." 

Then said Christian to Hopeful, " Is it true what 
this man says ? " 

Hopeful : " Take heed ; he is one of the flatterers. 
What ! No Mount Zion ? Did we not see from 
the Delectable Mountains the gate of the city ? " 

Christian : " It was not because I doubted that I 
put the question to you, but to see if you were 
honest in your heart. As for this man, he is 
blinded by the god of this world." 

Hopeful : " Now do I rejoice in the hope of the 
glory of God." 

So they turned away from this man, and he, 
laughing at them, went on his way. They went on 
till they came into a certain country, whose air 
naturally made one feel sleepy if he came a stranger 
to it. And here Hopeful began to be very dull 
and heavy with sleep. So he said to Christian, 
" I begin to grow so sleepy that I cannot hold 
up my eyes. Let us lie down here and take one 
nap." 

Christian : " No ! No ! For if we sleep we 
might never wake again." 

Hopeful : " Why, my brother, sleep is sweet to 
the toiling man ; we may be refreshed if we take a 
nap." 

Christian : " Do you not remember that one of 
the shepherds bade us take heed to ourselves on the 



Atheist and Enchanted Ground 175 

Enchanted Ground ? He meant by that that we 
must not fall asleep." 

Hopeful : " I confess my fault, and if I had been 
alone I should have gone asleep and run the danger 
of death, I now see it is true ' that two are better 
than one.' " ' 

Christian : " Now, to prevent us going to sleep 
in this place, let us talk to one another." 

Hopeful: " With all my heart." 

Christian : " Where shall we begin ? " 

Hopeful : " Where God began with us. But you 
make a start, if you please." 

So they talked for a long time of the reasons why 
they left the City of Destruction to go to Mount 
Zion. Hopeful told Christian how he was con- 
verted by speaking, when in great trouble of soul, 
to Faithful, who told him the way to be saved, and 
that was to trust the Lord Jesus, who dwells on the 
right hand of the Most High. Hopeful described 
his long search for peace, and his many prayers to 
God, and, said he, " One day, when I was very sad 
— I think sadder than on any day in my life — sud- 
denly I thought I saw the Lord Jesus Christ look- 
ing down from heaven upon me, and saying, ' Be- 
lieve on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be 
saved.' 2 And now was my heart full of joy, mine 
eyes full of tears, and my love running over to the 
name, the people and the ways of Jesus Christ. 
This made me love a holy life, and long to do some- 
thing for the honour and glory of the Lord Jesus." 

1 Eccl. iv. 9. 2 Acts xvi. 31. 



176 Little Faith, the Flatterer, 

Exposition 

The story of Little Faith shows the danger of 
those whose faith in God is not great. For they 
are likely to fall into a sleep and be attacked by the 
enemies of their souls. To keep Faint-heart, Mis- 
trust and Guilt at bay we must have on all the 
Christian armour and use the weapon of prayer. 
Weak faith may put a faint light in our souls, but 
strong faith can put a song in our mouths. Weak 
faith may take us to our journey's end, but we shall 
arrive footsore and weary, and shall suffer much 
needless pain. Little Faith is a man with a great 
inheritance, but has no cup running over. He can- 
not bring down to daily use the great riches in 
Christ Jesus. To avoid the case of Little Faith, we 
should desire that " he will go with us himself. " 

The trouble which the pilgrims suffered when 
they followed the Flatterer arose from a very small 
error. If they had looked at the note the shep- 
herds gave them they would have known the right 
way when they came to the place where two roads 
met. Nor would they have followed the Flatterer. 
But they thought they knew what was best and 
pleased themselves. They found out that the Flat- 
terer was a false friend. He looked white but was 
really black. He was an open friend and a secret 
enemy. He told untruths with a sweet and win- 
ning voice. The " note by the way " is the Word 
of God, the only safe light to lead them home. 

The Atheist is " the fool who saith in his heart, 
' There is no God.' " Only a blind man can look 



Atheist and Enchanted Ground 177 

and not see. So Atheist sees no sign of God in the 
stars above nor the lilies around him. But Atheist 
was no match for the pilgrims ; his laughter only 
stiffened their backs, and they went on. The En- 
chanted Ground tempts Christians to sleep and take 
life easier than they have done. The air is soft and 
the ground attractive, so we wish to lie down. 
Success in life, and much personal comfort, and a 
sense of duty well done, all tempt Christians to re- 
lax and sleep when they should still watch for 
souls. Ease and freedom and popularity all have 
their dangers. 

Questions 

What story did Christian tell Hopeful ? 

What men attacked Little Faith ? 

What did they do to him ? 

What happened where two roads met ? 

What did the black man do ? 

Who found them in the net ? 

What did he do? 

Why did he beat them ? 

What direction was Atheist going ? 

What did Atheist do when he heard the pilgrims 
were going to the Celestial City ? 

Did Atheist find the Celestial City ? 

How did Hopeful know there was a Celestial 
City? 

What was the danger of the Enchanted Ground ? 

How did Christian keep Hopeful awake ? 

What did the pilgrims talk about as they jour- 
neyed ? 



XVII 
BETJLAH LAND 

HOPEFUL, by chance, looked back and saw- 
Ignorance, whom they had left behind, 
coming after. 

" Look," said he, " how far yonder young man 
stays behind. Let us wait for him." Christian 
called to Ignorance : " Come on, man ; why do 
you stay behind ? " 

Ignorance : " I take pleasure in walking alone, I 
hope well, for I am always full of good emotions 
that come to my mind, to comfort me as I walk." 

Christian : " What good emotions ? " 

Ignorance : " Why, I think of God and heaven." 

Christian : " So do the devils." 

Ignorance : " But I think of them and desire 
them." 

Christian : "So do many who are not likely ever 
to get there." 

Ignorance : " But I think of them and leave all 
for them." 

Christian : " But how do you know you have 
left all for God and heaven ? " 

Ignorance : "My heart tells me so." 

Christian : " The wise man says, ' He that trusts 
his own heart is a fool.' " l 

1 Prov. xxviii. 26. 

i 7 8 






Beulah Land 179 

Ignorance : " That is spoken of an evil heart ; 
mine is a good one." 

Christian : " How can you prove that ? " 

Ignorance : " It comforts me in hopes of heaven." 

Christian : " That may be through its deceitful- 
ness." 

Ignorance : " But my heart and life agree to- 
gether, and so I have good ground for my hope." 

Christian : " Who told you your heart and life 
agree together ? " 

Ignorance : " My heart tells me so." 

Christian : " Except the Word of God beareth 
witness in this matter, other statements are of no 
value." 

Ignorance : " Is it not a good heart that hath 
good thoughts ? Is it not a good life which keeps 
the commandments ? " 

Christian : " Yes, that is a good heart and life. 
But it is one thing to have these, it is another thing 
only to think so." 

Ignorance : " What are good thoughts about our- 
selves ? " 

Christian : " Such as agree with the Word of God. " 

Ignorance : " When do our thoughts of ourselves 
agree with the Word of God ? " 

Christian : " When we hold the same opinion 
about ourselves that the Word of God holds." 

Ignorance : "I will never believe that my heart 
is bad." 

Christian : " Therefore you never had one good 
thought about yourself in all your life." 



180 Beulah Land 

Thus they talked for a long time and Christian 
tried to show Ignorance the error of his ways ; but 
in vain. At last Ignorance said : " That is your 
faith, but not mine. Yet mine, I doubt not, is as 
good as yours, though I have not so many foolish 
notions in my head as you." 

Christian : " You ought to be careful about this 
matter, for I tell you no man can know Jesus Christ 
except by the revelation of the Father. Be awak- 
ened to see your own danger, and fly to Jesus 
Christ, and you shall be saved." 

Ignorance : " You go too fast. I cannot keep 
pace with you. Do you go on before ; I must stay 
behind." 

So they went on apace, and Ignorance came hob- 
bling after them. Then said Christian to his friend : 
" It makes me full of pity when I think of this poor 
man. It will surely go ill with him at the last " 

By this time the pilgrims w T ere through the En- 
chanted Ground, and entering into the country of 
Beulah. 1 The air was very sweet and pleasant, the 
way lying directly through it, and they comforted 
themselves for a season. Yes, here they heard con- 
tinually the singing of birds, and saw every day 
the flowers appear in the earth, and heard the 
voice of the turtle-dove in the land. 

In this country the sun shines night and day. It 
was beyond the Valley of the Shadow of Death, 
and also out of the reach of Giant Despair, nor 
could they from here see Doubting Castle. 
1 Isa. lxii. 4, 12 ; Can. ii. 10, 12. 



Beulah Land 181 

Here also they were within sight of the City to 
which they were going ; also here they met some 
of the inhabitants of the City. For in this land 
the shining ones commonly walked because it was 
on the borders of heaven. In this land the con- 
tract between the Bride and the Bridegroom was 
renewed. As a bridegroom rejoices over his bride, 
so did their God rejoice over them. 

Here they have no lack of corn and wine, for in 
this land they met with abundance of what they 
sought for all through their pilgrim journey. Here 
they heard loud voices from out the City, saying : 
" Say ye to the daughter of Zion, Behold thy sal- 
vation cometh ! Behold, his reward is with him ! " 
Here all the inhabitants of the country called them 
" The holy people ; the redeemed of the Lord." 

Now as they walked in this land, they had more 
rejoicing than in parts more remote from the king- 
dom to which they were bound. And drawing near 
to the City, they had a yet more perfect view of it. 

It was builded of pearls and precious stones, and 
the streets were paved with gold, so that, by reason 
of the natural glory of the City, and the reflection 
of the sunbeams upon it, Christian with desire fell 
sick. Hopeful, also, had a fit of the same disease. 
Wherefore, they were laid up with the sickness for 
a while, crying out, " If ye find my Beloved, tell 
him that I am sick of love." * 

But being a little strengthened, and better able 
to bear their sickness, they must be on their way, 

1 Can. v. 8. 



182 Beulah Land 

and came nearer and nearer, where were orchards, 
vineyards and gardens, the gates of which opened 
into the highway. Now as they came up to those 
places, behold, the gardener stood in the way, to 
whom the pilgrims said : " Whose goodly vineyards 
and gardens are these ? " 

He answered : " They are the King's, and they 
are planted here for his own delight, and also for 
the comfort of pilgrims." 

So the gardener took them into the vineyards, 
and told them to refresh themselves with dainties. 1 

He also showed them the King's walks, and the 
arbours where he delighted to be, and here they 
rested and slept. 

Now it was noticed that the pilgrims talked more 
in their sleep than they had ever done before, in all 
their pilgrim journey. This was because it is the 
nature of the fruit, of the grapes of these vineyards, 
to go down so sweetly as to cause the lips of them 
that are asleep to speak. 2 

When they awoke, they made ready to go up 
into the City ; but the reflection of the sun upon 
the City was so extremely glorious that they could 
not as yet with open face behold it, but through an 
instrument made for the purpose. 3 

Exposition 

In Beulah Land the Christians had a much closer 
vision of the mighty City " far sinking into splendour 
without end," whose brightness was the " illumina- 

^eut. xxiii. 24. 2 Can. vii. 9. 3 2 Cor. iii. 18. 



Beulah Land 183 

tion of all gems," a fabric of diamonds and of gold, 
with its alabaster domes, silver spires, blazing ter- 
races, avenues of serene pavilions and jewelled bat- 
tlements. They had got far beyond the fogs and 
mists and clouds of doubt, and could now look 
calmly back upon all the way along which they 
had been led. It had been a wonderful journey, 
and God's love and grace had been evinced at every 
turn of it. One steadfast look, far back, upon the 
cross, had done it all. There is life in such a look. 
Now they have reached a place where the soul 
grows more and more into His image. A calm sun- 
set of the Christian life, when in perfect peace, the 
soul reposes upon God, and walks in holy joy in 
the borderland of the Celestial Home. In Beulah, 
the " rose of evening becomes silently and suddenly 
the rose of dawn." How clear the air, how clean 
the heart, and how unclouded the eye of those who 
dwell in Beulah ! Here the Beatitude becomes 
true : " Blessed are the pure in heart, for they 
shall see God." Here the pilgrims had brightening 
hopes, for their rejoicing increased at every step in 
their onward progress, and, drawing near to the 
City, they had a more perfect view of it. The 
pilgrims felt a longing desire. The natural glory 
of the City, and the reflection of the sunbeams on 
it, made Christian with desire fall sick. For the 
sight of heaven fills the soul with longing for it. 
It was thus with Mr. Hervey, who, when he was 
told he had but a few moments to live, said, " These 
light afflictions are but for a moment, and then 



184 Beulah Land 

comes an eternal weight of glory. Oh, welcome, 
welcome, death ! " 

The delights of the Christian life are greatly 
increased in the Land of Beulah. There the believer 
is abundantly satisfied with the good things of God. 
" The path of the just is as the shining light, which 
shine th more and more unto the perfect day." 

There is often given a foretaste of heaven, even 
on the brink of the river of death. Thomas Scott, 
just before he died, said : " This is heaven begun. 
I have done with darkness forever, forever. Satan 
is vanquished. Nothing now remains but salvation, 
with eternal glory." When John Angel James had 
reached the last week of his earthly life he was 
cheerful and happy, although knowing his depar- 
ture was nigh. He talked much of heaven, and 
looked forward with great joy to " the rest that 
remaineth." When assisted to his bedroom for the 
last time he turned to his helper and said : " Inas- 
much as ye have done it unto one of the least of 
these, thou hast done it unto me." Who can doubt 
that Angel James was in the Land of Beulah ? 
How glorious was the home-going of Dr. McCaul ! 
Three days before his death he was told the end 
was not far off. He said his hopes were built on 
these two texts, " God was in Christ reconciling 
the world unto Himself " ; and, " When he was a 
great way off, his father saw him, and had com- 
passion, and ran and fell on his neck, and kissed 
him." " On these texts," he added, " I take my 
stand, and nothing remains but to fall asleep as 



Beulah Land 185 

peacefully as possible in Jesus." Here is Beulah, 
with Eliot the missionary. Walking its streets, he 
said : " The evening clouds are passing away. The 
Lord whom I have served, like Poly carp, for eighty 
years, will not forsake me now. Oh, come in glory ! 
I have long waited for Thy coming. Let no dark 
cloud rest on the work of the Indians ; let it live 
when I am dead." Here his voice failed, and his 
last words were, " Welcome, joy." 

" You are going home," said one to Dr. Gordon. 
" I feel at home already," he replied. To one at 
his bedside he observed : " My gracious God has 
been very merciful to me. He has given me a joy 
I never felt before, an inconceivable joy." And to 
another, " I have Christ by me. See Death ? I 
see nothing but Christ." 



Questions 

Whom did Christian and Faithful meet again ? 

Did Christian make Ignorance see the error of 
his ways ? 

What country did they enter after they had 
passed through the Enchanted Ground ? 

What made the Land of Beulah so pleasant ? 

What City could be seen from Beulah ? 

With what did Christian and Hopeful fall sick ? 

What was the City built with ? 

To whom did the orchards and gardens belong ? 

Where did the pilgrims sleep ? 

What made them talk in their sleep ? 

Why could they not look at the City ? 



XYIII 
CEOSSING THE EIVEE 

AS they went on there met them two men in 
raiment that shone like gold ; also their 
faces shone as the light. These men asked 
the pilgrims where they came from, and they told 
them. They also asked them where they had 
slept, what difficulties, dangers, what comforts and 
pleasures they had met with in the way ; and they 
told them. 

Then said the men, " You have two more diffi- 
culties to meet with, and then you are in the city." 

Christian and Hopeful then asked the men to go 
along with them ; so they told them they would, and 
together they went on till they came in sight of 
the gate. Now between them and the gate was a 
river, but there was no bridge to cross over, and 
the river was very deep. At the sight of this river 
the pilgrims were much upset. 

But the men that went with them said, "You 
must go through the waters, or you cannot come 
to the gate." 

The pilgrims then began to inquire if there was 
no other way to the gate, to which the men an- 
swered, " Yes ; but only two, Enoch and Elijah, 
were permitted to tread that path since the founda- 

186 



Crossing the River 187 

tion of the world. Nor shall any other go that 
way till the last trumpet shall sound." ' 

The pilgrims then, especially Christian, began to 
despond in their minds and looked this way and 
that, but no way of escape could be found by which 
they might avoid the river. Then they asked the 
men if the waters were of a depth. They said no, 
but they could not help them in any case, for, said 
they, " You shall find it deeper or shallower, as 
you believe in the King of the place." 

Then they went down into the water and, enter- 
ing, Christian began to sink. Thereupon, crying 
out to his good friend Hopeful, he said, " I sink in 
deep waters ; the billows go over my head ; all 
their waves go over me." 

Hopeful : " Be of good cheer, my brother ; I 
feel the bottom and it is good." 

Christian: "Ah, my friend, ' the sorrows of 
death have compassed me about.' I shall not see 
the land that flows with milk and honey"; and 
with that a great darkness and horror fell upon 
Christian, so that he could not see before him. 
Also here he in great measure lost his senses, so 
that he could neither remember nor talk sanely of 
any of those sweet delights he had met with in the 
way of the pilgrim journey. All the words that 
he spoke showed that he had horror of mind, and 
heart-fears that he should die in the river and 
never obtain entrance in at the gate. Here, also, 
as they that stood by saw, he was much troubled 

1 1 Cor. xv. 51. 



188 Crossing the River 

about thoughts of the sins that he had committed, 
both since and before he became a pilgrim. It was 
also observed that he was troubled with signs of 
evil spirits, for every now and then he would hint 
so much by his words. 

Hopeful had much ado to keep Christian's head 
above water, and sometimes he would be quite gone 
down, and then, after a while, he would rise up 
again half dead. Hopeful would try to comfort 
him, saying, " Brother, I see the gate and the men 
standing by to receive us." 

But Christian would answer, "It is you — it is 
you they wait for. You have been hopeful ever 
since I knew you." 

" And so have you," Hopeful replied. 

" Ah ! brother," said Christian, " surely if I was 
right he, the King, would now arise and help me ; 
but for my sins he has brought me into this trial 
and has left me." 

But Hopeful answered again, " My brother, you 
have quite forgot the text, ' There are no bands in 
their death, but their strength is firm.' ' These 
troubles and distresses that you go through in these 
waters are no sign that God has forsaken you, but 
are sent to try you to see if you will call to mind 
what kindness you have already received from Him, 
and can live upon Him in your distresses." 

Then Christian was in a deep study for a while, 
and Hopeful added this word : " Be of good cheer. 
Jesus Christ maketh thee whole." 

1 Ps. lxxiii. 4, 5. 



CROSSING THE RIVER 

Hopeful also would endeavor to comfort him, saying, "Brother, 

I see the gate." 



Crossing the River 189 

With that Christian broke out with a loud voice, 
" Oh, I see him again, and he tells me, ' When thou 
passest through the waters I will be with thee ; 
and through the rivers, they shall not overflow 
thee' I" 1 

Then they both took courage, and the enemy 
after that was as still as a stone until they were 
gone over. 

Christian, therefore, soon found ground to stand 
upon, and so it followed that the rest of the river 
was but shallow. Thus they got over. 

Exposition 
The dread of death is no proof that we are want- 
ing in faith and hope. Many of God's best sons and 
daughters have " looked this way and that "in a 
vain attempt to avoid death. That feeling is an 
instinct. Death has come into this beautiful world, 
where it was never meant to be. " By man came 
death." Dying is something we may all shrink 
from, but we must go through the river if we are 
to come in at the gate. It is faith that makes the 
river shallow ; want of faith makes it deep. The 
river of Death is deeper or shallower as we believe 
on the King. "In crossing the river," wrote 
Samuel Kutherford to Lady Kenmare, "hold his 
hand fast. He knows all the fords. Put in your 
foot, then, and wade after him. And be sure you 
set your feet always on the stepping stones." 
Though Christian and Faithful had much dread of 

1 Isa. xliii. 2. 



190 Crossing the River 

the river, and were overcome at the sight of it, all 
the pilgrims who pass over are not overcome. 
Some, indeed, do not mind the river in the least, 
and go over with shouts of joy and thanksgiving. 
In the second part of " The Pilgrim's Progress " 
we have the record of the passing of several of the 
pilgrims. In the case of Christiana, the wife of 
Christian, the post came from the Celestial City 
and presented her with a letter. In it she read : 
" Hail, good woman, I bring thee tidings that the 
Master calleth for thee, and expects thee to stand 
in his presence, clothed in immortality, within ten 
days." 

After calling all her friends, and giving them 
words of advice and love, she made ready to go. 
On the day set for her going the road was full of 
people to see her take her journey. But, behold ! 
all the banks beyond the river were full of horses 
and chariots, which were come down to accompany 
her to the city gate. So she came forth and en- 
tered the river, with a beckon of farewell to those 
that followed her to the riverside. The last words 
that she was heard to say were : " I come, Lord, to 
be with Thee and bless Thee." 

Her children and friends then returned to their 
places, for those that waited for Christiana carried 
her out of their sight. In the process of time there 
came a post again, and his business was with Mr. 
Keady-to-halt. When he found him he said, "I 
am come to thee in the name of him whom thou 
hast loved and followed, though upon crutches, 



Crossing the River 191 

and now he expects thee to sit at his table and sup 
with him in his kingdom. So prepare for the 
journey." Mr. Ready-to-halt, therefore, sent for 
his friends and said, " I am sent for," and bade 
them farewell and thanked them all for their kind- 
ness to him. When he came to the brink of the 
river he said, " Now I shall have no more need of 
these crutches, since yonder are chariots and horses 
for me to ride on." The last words he was heard 
to say were, " Welcome life." So he went his way. 

After this it was made known that Mr. Valiant- 
for-truth was served with a summons from the post. 
When he knew it he called his friends and said, " I 
am going to my Father, and though with great 
difficulty I am come here, yet I do not regret all 
the trouble I have had to arrive here." 

When the day came that he must go hence many 
went with him to the riverside, and as he entered 
the water he said, "Death, where is thy sting?" 
And as he went down deeper he cried, " Grave, 
where is thy victory ? " So he passed over, and all 
the trumpets sounded for him on the other side. 

Then there came a summons for Mr. Stand-fast, 
and the post brought it to him open in his hands. 
The contents of it were that he must prepare for a 
change, for his Master was not willing that he 
should be so far from him any longer. When Mr. 
Stand-fast had set all his affairs in order, and the 
time being come for him to hasten away, he also 
went down to the river. Now there was a great 
calm at that time in the river ; so Mr. Stand-fast, 



192 Crossing the River 

when he was half-way in, stood a while and talked 
to his companions who had followed him to the 
river. He said : " This river has been a terror to 
many ; yes, and the thoughts of it have often 
frightened me. Now I think I stand easy. The 
waters are indeed to the palate bitter, and to the 
stomach cold. Yet the thoughts of what I am go- 
ing to, and of the convoy that awaits me on the 
other side, lies as a glowing coal on my heart. I 
see myself now at the end of my journey ; my 
toilsome days are ended. I am going now to see 
that head that was crowned with thorns, and that 
face that was spit upon for me. I have loved to 
hear my Lord spoken of, and wherever I have seen 
the print of his shoe in the earth there I have de- 
sired to set my foot also." 

While he was making this discourse his counte- 
nance changed, and the strong man's body bowed 
underneath him ; and after he had said, " Take me, 
for I come unto Thee," he ceased to be seen by 
them. But glorious it was to see how the open 
space was filled with horses and chariots, with 
trumpeters and pipers, with singers and players on 
stringed instruments, to welcome the pilgrims as 
they went up and followed one another in at the 
beautiful gate of the Celestial City. 

Questions 

Who met and questioned the pilgrims ? 
What was between the pilgrims and the gate ? 
What was it that upset the pilgrims ? 



Crossing the River 193 

"What made the river deeper or shallower ? 
What happened to Christian when he entered 
the river ? 
What did Hopeful say to him ? 
Was Christian much troubled about his past ? 
How did Hopeful keep Christian from sinking ? 
What did Hopeful again say to Christian ? 
What did Christian reply ? 
How did Christian at last find hope and help ? 
What did Christian hear and see ? 
Did the river then become shallow ? 



XIX 
ENTEEING THE GATE OP THE CITY 

NOW upon the bank of the river on the 
other side they saw the two Shining 
Ones again, who there waited for them. 
When the pilgrims were come out of the river the 
men saluted them, saying, "We are ministering 
spirits, sent forth to minister to those that shall be 
heirs of salvation." 

Thus they went along towards the gate. Now 
the city stood upon a mighty hill, but the pilgrims 
went up that hill with ease, because they had these 
two men to lead them. Also, they had left their 
mortal garments behind them in the river ; for 
though they went in with them, they came out 
without them. They, therefore, went up here with 
much speed, though the foundation upon which the 
city was built was higher than the clouds. They 
went up through the regions of the air, sweetly talk- 
ing as they went, being comforted because they had 
got safely over the river, and had such glorious 
companions to attend them. 

The talk they had with the Shining Ones was 
about the glory of the place, and were told by them 
that the beauty and glory of it was inexpressible. 
" There," said they, " is Mount Zion, the heavenly 

194 



Of the City 195 

Jerusalem, the innumerable company of angels, and 
the spirits of just men made perfect. 1 You are go- 
ing now," said they, " to the paradise of God, wherein 
you shall see the tree of life, and eat of the never 
decaying fruits thereof. And when you come there 
you shall have white robes given you, and your 
walk and talk shall be every day with the King, 
even all the days of Eternity. 2 There you shall not 
see again such things as you saw on earth, such as 
sorrow, sickness, affliction and death, ' for the former 
things are passed away.' 3 You are now going to 
Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and to the prophets, 
men that God has taken away from the evil to 
come." 

Christian and Hopeful then asked, " What must 
we do in this holy place ? " 

To this it was answered, " You must there receive 
the comforts of all your toil, and have joy for all 
your sorrow. You must reap what you have sowd, 
even the fruits of all your prayers, and tears, and 
sufferings for the King by the way. 4 In that place 
you must wear crowns of gold, and enjoy the per- 
petual vision of the Holy One, for there you shall 
see him as he is. 5 There also shall you serve him 
continually with praise, with shouting and thanks- 
giving, whom you served in the world, though with 
much difficulty, because of the infirmity of the flesh. 
There shall your eyes be delighted with seeing, and 
your ears with hearing, the pleasant voice of the 

1 Heb. xii. 22-24. 2 Rev. ii. 7 ; iii. 4, 5 ; xxii. 5. 

3 Rev. xxi. 4. 4 Gal. vi. 7, 8. B 1 John iii. 2. 



196 Entering the Gate 

Mighty One. There shall you enjoy your friends 
again, that are gone there before you ; and there 
shall you receive with joy all who follow into the 
holy place after you. There also shall you be 
clothed with glory and majesty, and put into an 
equipage fit to ride out with the King of Glory. 
When he shall come with sound of trumpet in the 
clouds, as upon the wings of the wind, you shall 
come with him ; and when he shall sit upon the 
Throne of Judgment you shall sit by him. And 
when he shall pass sentence upon all workers of 
iniquity, let them be angels or men, you also shall 
have a voice in that judgment, because they were 
his and your enemies. Also when he shall return 
again to the city you shall go too, with sound of 
trumpet, and be ever with him." 1 

Now while they were thus drawing towards the 
gate, behold a company of the heavenly host came 
out to meet them, to whom it was said by the other 
Shining Ones, " These are the men that have loved 
our Lord when they were in the world, and that 
have left all for his holy name. And he hath sent 
us to fetch them, and we have brought them thus 
far on their desired journey that they may go in 
and look their Kedeemer in the face with joy." 

Then the heavenly host gave a shout, saying, 
" Blessed are they who are called unto the marriage 
supper of the Lamb." 2 

1 1 Thess. iv. 13, 17 ; Jude 14, 15 ; Dan. vii. 9, 10; 1 Cor. 
vi. 2, 3. 
2 Rev. xix. 9. 



Of the City 197 

There came out also at this time to meet them 
several of the King's trumpeters, clothed in white 
and shining raiment, who with loud and melodious 
noises made even the heavens to echo with their 
sound. These trumpeters saluted Christian and 
Hopeful with ten thousand welcomes from the 
world ; and this they did with shouting and sound 
of trumpet. This done, they surrounded them 
on every side ; some went before, some behind, 
and some on the right hand and some on the left, 
as it were, to guard them through the upper re- 
gions. 

Continually sounding as they went, with melo- 
dious noise, in notes on high, so that the very sight 
was to them that could behold it as if heaven itself 
was come down to meet them. Thus, therefore, as 
they walked on together, every now and then these 
trumpeters would, by mixing their music with 
looks and gestures, still signify to Christian and 
Hopeful how welcome they were into their com- 
pany and with what gladness they came to meet 
them. 

And now were these two men as it were in 
heaven, before they came at it, being swallowed up 
with the sight of angels, and with the hearing of 
melodious notes. Here, also, they had the City it- 
self in view, and they thought they heard all the 
bells therein ringing to welcome them. But above 
all were the warm and joyful thoughts that they 
had about their own dwelling there, with such 
company, and that forever and ever. Oh, by what 



198 Entering the Gate 

tongue or pen can their joy be expressed ! And 
thus they came to the gate. 

Now, when they were come up to the gate, there 
was written over it in letters of gold : " Blessed are 
they that do His commandments, that they may have 
right to the tree of life, and may enter in through 
the gates into the City." l 

Then the Shining Ones bade them call at the 
gate, which, when they did, some of the dwellers 
within the City looked over the gate, such as 
Enoch, Moses and Elijah, to whom it was said, 
" These pilgrims are come from the City of De- 
struction for the love they bear to the King of this 
place." And then the pilgrims gave to them their 
certificates, which they had received at the begin- 
ning. These, therefore, were carried in to the 
King, who, when he had read them, said, " Where 
are these men ? " 

" They are standing without the gate." 

The King then commanded to open the gate, 
" that the righteous nation that keepeth the truth 
may enter in." 2 

Now the two men went in at the gate, and lo ! 
as they entered, they were transfigured, and they 
had raiment put on that shone like gold. There 
were also those that met them with harps and 
crowns, and gave them to them — the harps for 
praise, and the crowns as a mark of honour. 

Then all the bells of the city rang for joy, and 
it was said to them, "Enter ye into the joy of your 

1 Rev. xxii. 14. 2 Isa. xxvi. 2. 



Of the City 199 

Lord." l Then the pilgrims themselves sang with 
loud voices, saying, "Blessing and honour, and 
glory, and power, be unto him that sitteth upon the 
throne, and unto the Lamb, forever and ever" z 

Now just as the gates were opened to let in the 
men, it was seen that the City shone like the sun. 
The streets also were paved with gold, and in them 
walked many men, with crowns on their heads, and 
palms in their hands, and golden harps for praise. 

There were also those who had wings, and they 
answered one another without ceasing, saying, 
" Holy, holy, holy is the Lord" 3 And after that 
the gates were shut again. 

»Matt. xxv. 23. 2 Rev. v. 13. 3 Rev. iv. 8. 



Printed in the United States of America 



JUVENILE 



MARY STEWART 

Once Upon a Time Tales 

With "The Way to Once-Upon-A-Time" by Henry 
van Dyke. Decorated and Illustrated by Griselda 
M. McClure. i2mo, cloth, net $1.25. 

These real fairy tales by the author of "Tell Me a True 
Story" are fresh as mountain breezes and clear as the water 
of running brooks. They have that simplicity and dramatic 

Suality which irresistibly reminds the reader of Anderson and 
rim, Carroll and Lang. 

MRS. I. T. THURSTON 

The Scout Master of Troop 5 

By the author of "The Bishop's Shadow." Illus- 
trated, i2mo, cloth, net $1.00. 

Mrs. Ihurston demonstrated to the delight of thousands 
in "The Bishop's Shadow" that she knew the heart of a boy 
as few other writers to-day do. She has again proved her 
right to be considered a master interpreter of the boy mind 
in this Boy Scout story. It has action a-plenty, is fresh, 
breezy and the style is straigthaway and clear cut. 

COLTON MAYNARD 

Elliott Gray, Jr. 

A Chronicle of School Life at Arlington. Net $1.00. 

"Arlington" is no other than Hotchkiss School, and many 
of the incidents in this fascinating story are founded upon 
actual fact. Prof. William Lyon Phelps of Yale says: "The 
story is very interesting, and it is true to the best things 
in American school boy school ilfe." 

PELL'S BIBLE STORIES 

Illustrated, i2mo, cloth, each net 35c. 

The Story of Jesus for Little People 

A very direct appeal is made to the child soul. The 
purpose is to gently, winningly draw the child toward the 
divine lover of his kind. The book is a distinct addition 
to the lives of Christ for children. 

FOR YOUNG PEOPLE 
The Story of Joseph— The Dreamer 

The Jewish shepherd lad who became the prime minister 
of Egypt lives in a very real way in this little story of his 
life. Told in a supposedly autobiographical form it presents 
an entirely new method of treating a Bible story. 

The Story of David—The Idol of the People 

Like the "Story of Joseph" this life of the Psalmist is 
cast in an autobiographical form and written fn language that 
young people will appreciate and adults will enjoy. 



FOREIGN MISSIONS AND YOUNG PEOPLE 



BELLE M. BRAIN 

Love Stories of Great Missionaries 

Illustrated, i2mo, cloth, net 50c. 

Miss Brain has made a distinct place for herself in mis- 
sionary literature. She is preeminently a story-teller, know- 
ing well how to invest her subject with charm and interest. 
In these love stories of the World's great missionaries she is 
at her best. It is evident from these romances of Judson 
and Gilmour and Livingstone and Moffat and Caillard and 
Martyn, which she portrays with such fascination, that love, 
courtship and marriage are very vital factors in the Mission- 
ary Enterprise. 

JULIA H. JOHNSTON 

Fifty Missionary Heroes Every Boy and 
Girl Should Know 

Illustrated, i2mo, cloth, net $1.00. 

The author of that popular Mission Study Text Book, IN- 
DIAN AND SPANISH NEIGHBORS, has supplied a real 
need in this volume for Junior readers and leaders. < Miss 
Johnston gives living portraits of a large number of mission- 
ary heroes well adapted to interest and inspire young people. 

EMILY E. ENTWISTLE 

The Steep Ascent 

Missionary Talks With Young People. i2mo, 
cloth, net $1.00. 

Martha Tarbell says of the book, "It is exceedingly well 
and interestingly written, adapted to the Junior and lower 
Intermediate grades for which so few books of this sort are 
written." 

BASIL MA THEWS, M.A. 

The Splendid Quest 

Stories of Knights on the Pilgrim Way. i2tno, 
cloth, net $1.00. 

Ihe Prologue, "The Pilgrim's Way," serves as a back- 
ground for the life stories of famous Knights of the Quest 
which follow. The stories are suitable for children of from 
8 to 15. 

REV. W. MUNN 

Three Men on a Chinese Houseboat 

The Story of a River Voyage Told, for Young 
Folks. Illustrated, i2mo, cloth, net $1.00. 

The story of an actual trip up the Yang-tse river taken by 
three missionaries on the way to their stations. In breezy, 
easy-flowing narrative one of the three tells the very inter- 
esting story of their fifteen hundred mile journey. The book 
should be a very acceptible addition to missionary stories 
and side-light reading. 



FICTION, JUVENILE, ETC. 



MARTHA S. G IE LP IV 

Uncle Sam 

A Story of the Mountaineers. Illustrated, net 50c. 

The dramatic quality of this original little story of the 
southern mountain people grips the reader and makes an 
irresistible appeal to his emotions. The author is widely 
known as a skillful and realistic interpreter of southern life 
thro' her readings and her previously published works, "Old 
Andy the Moonshiner," "Mammy's Reminiscences," etc. 

EDWARD A. STEINER „ Author of 

"On the Trail of the Immigrant" 

The Parable of the Cherries 

i2mo, boards, net 50c. 

A call to a larger brotherhood by one who has devoted half 
a life time to informing and softening our thoughts toward 
the stranger within our gates. 

JOHN BUNYAN 

The Pilgrim's Progress 

New Pilgrim Edition. A popular reprint of the 
standard "Puritan" edition, acknowledged to be with- 
out a superior in point of accuracy and faithfulness 
to the latest revisions by Bunyan himself. With 
eight of the celebrated Copping illustrations — clear 
type, annotated. i2mo, cloth, decorated, net 50c. 

/. T. THURSTON Author of" The Bishop's Shadow," etc. 

The Torch Bearer 

A Camp Fire Girls' Story. Illustrated, net $1.00. 

"A story of Camp Fire life both in the city meetings and 
in active camp in the country, it shows with graphic clearness 
what this great movement will mean to thousands of girls. 
The author has made this appeal the underlying burden of 
the narrative, all the more poignant because it is made with- 
out any attempt at effort. An interesting tale for not only 
the initiated but the uninitiated as well." — Washington Times. 

MARY STEW ART ,.„, „ nM Author of 

^^— — ^— ^— — Tell Me a True Story, etc. 

The Shepherd of Us All 

Stories of the Christ Retold for Children. Illus- 
trated, net $1.25. 

There is a touching beauty and clearness about Miss 
Stewart's pictures of the Christ life which will ineffaceably 
impress itself upon the child heart. To say that it is in 
the author's best style is sufficient recommendation for thou- 
sands who have admired and enjoyed "Tell Me a True 
Story," and "Once Upon a Time Tales." 



BIBLICAL EXPOSITION 



B. H. CARROLL, P.P. 

An Interpretation of the English Bible 

The Book of Revelation 8v , doth, net $1.75 
The Book of Genesis 8v , cioth, net $2.25 
Exodus and Leviticus 8v 0) cioth, net $2.25 

OTHER VOLUMES IN PREPARATION 
The President of the Southwestern Baptist Theological 
Seminary presents in these volumes lectures delivered in 
his class room. They will be followed by others on differ- 
ent books of the Bible. Thousands who have been touched 
by his ministry; hundreds of students who have been in- 
fluenced by his teaching and many who have been helped by 
his writings will appreciate the opportunity to secure his 
comments on the Scripture. 

JAMIE SON, FAUSSETT & BROWN 

Commentary on the Old and New 
Testaments new edition 

Critical, Practical and Explanatory, ioth edition. 
2 vols., 8vo, cloth, boxed, net $3.00. 

A new edition containing the complete unabridged notes in 
handy form. With copious index and Dictionary of Scripture 
proper names. 
RT. REV. J. C. RYLE Late Bishop of Liverpool 

Expository Thoughts on the Gospels 

Seven volumes. i2mo, cloth, boxed, New Popular 
Edition. Special price, net $4.50 ; each vol,, net 75c. 

For a generation and a half "Ryle on the Gospels" has 
been a standard work in thousands of pastoral libraries and 
Christian homes. The complete text of the Gospels is given 
together with very full explanatory notes. Vol I Matthew, 
Vol. II Mark, Vol. Ill and Vol. IV Luke, Vols. V, VI and 
VII John. 

WESTMINSTER NEW TESTAMENT 

Romans and Galatians 

By Pres. W. Douglas Mackenzie, D.D. Completing 
the Westminster New Testament Series. 

COMPLETE SERIES NOW READY 
Matthew: David Smith Thessalonians-Corintliians: 

Mark: Prof. S. W. Green „ . . . Prof. R Mackintosh 

Luke : Principal E. A. Garvie CaphTity and Pastoral Epistle, : 
.. -r, T t tut /~>i 1 James btracnan, M.A. 

John : Rev Henry W Clark Hebrewg aild J Genera i EpistIe8 . 

The Acts : Prof. H. Andrews R ev . A. F. Mitchell 

Romans and Galatians : Johannine Epistles and Apocalypse: 

Prof. W. D. Mackenzie Rev. Alexander Ramsey 

Cioth, net 75c. per vol. The set, 10 vols., boxed, $1.50 net 
Sunday-school Times says: "Brief, lucid, novel in form and 
arrangement, trustworthy, signally free from waste matter. 



CIIRISTOLOGY 



G. CAMPBELL MORGAN, P.P. 

The Teaching of Christ 

A Companion Volume to "The Crises of The 
Christ." 8vo, cloth, net $1.50. 

"One does not read far before he is amazed at the clear 
and logical grasp Dr. Morgan has upon divine truths. Could 
a copy of this book, with its marvelous insight, its straight- 
forwardness, its masterly appeal, be placed in the hands of 
our church leaders, it would go far toward negativing the 
spiritual barrenness of destructive criticism. Here is a work 
that may profitably occupy a prominent place in the minister's 
library." — Augsburg Teacher. 

PERCY C. ALNSJVORTH 

The Silences of Jesus and St. Paul's 
Hymn to Love 

i2mo, cloth, net $1.25. 

Another volume of studies in religious thought from the 
gifted author of "The Pilgrim Church" and other sermons. 

Of Mr. Ainsworth's work Dr. Robertson Nicoll says: "I 
had not read for five minutes before I recognized that in 
Percy Ainsworth the Church had a great preacher, one of a 
thousand. His sermons have an extraordinary reality." 

/. BENJ. LAJVRENCE 

The Biology of the Cross 

i2mo, cloth, net 75c. 

Dr. Lawrence's treatise invests the great sacrifice with 
new lights and meanings which will bring to the heart of 
the Christian reader renewed gratitude and faith and to the 
unbelieving a persuasive and convincing portrayal of the 
necessity and place of the Cross in human life. 

PHLLLP MAURO 

God's Apostle and High Priest 

i2mo, cloth, net 50c. ; paper, net 30c. 

"Readers may differ with the author's conclusions but 
they will read the book with sustained interest and be slow 
to take issue with him as he sets before them the arguments 
upon which his conclusions rest. It is an inspiration to read 
after such a man of faith." — Baltimore Christian Advocate. 

FRANK M. THOMAS 

The Coming Presence 

Second Advent of Jesus Christ in the Light of 
Scriptures and the World Order. Cloth, net $1.50. 

Dr. Thomas who is well known in Southern Methodism for 
his scholarly^ ability and acumen of thought has treated this 
great theme in a candid thoroughgoing, open-minded manner. 



FICTION WITH A PURPOSE 

RUPERT HU GHES 

— 

Miss 318 and Mr. 37 

Illustrated, i2mo, cloth, net 75c. 

Miss 318 has met her affinity. In this latest story of 
how she captured him in the person of a New York fire 
laddie, "Number 37," Mr. Hughes has surpassed himself. 
The narrative is full of the same characters, humor, depart- 
ment store lingo and vital human interest of MISS 318. 

MARY ELIZABETH SMITH 

In Bethany House 

A Story of Social Service. i2mo, cloth, net $1.25. 

"Without any plot at all the book would still be worth 
^reading; with its earnestness, its seriousness of purpose,, it* 
health optimism, its breadth of outlook, and its sympathetic 
: nsight into the depths of the human heart. 5 ' — N. Y. Times 

MARGARET E. SANGSTER 

Eastover Parish Cloth, net $1.00. 

A new story by Margaret Sangster is an "event" among 
a wide circle of readers. Mary £. Wilkins places Mrs. 
Gangster as "a legitimate successor to Louise M. Alcott as 
a writer of meritorius books for girls, combining absorbing 
story and high moral tone." Her new book is a story of 
"real life and real people, of incidents that have actual''" 
happened in Mrs. Sangster's life." 

THOMAS D. WHITTLES 

The Parish of the Pines 

The Story of Frank Higgins, the Lumber-Jack's 
Sky Pilot. Illustrated, i2mo, cloth, net $1.00. 

Norman Duncan, author of "The Measure of a Man,'* 
calls this "Walking boss of the Sky-route Company," "a 
man's Christian doing an admirable work in the Woods of 
the Northwest." The narrative has the ozone, and the spicy- 
ness of the great pine forests in which the scenes are laid. 

ANNE GILBERT 

The Owl's Nest Cloth, net 75c 

"This is the account of a_ vacation among 'isms.' Follow* 
crs of some of the fantastic cults and simple Christians 
met together in a country boarding house and the result 
is certainly interesting." — Missions. 

ISABEL G. and FLORENCE L. BUSH 
GOOSe Creek FolkS A Story of the Kentucky Mountains 

Illustrated, i2mo, cloth, net $1.00. 

A story of real life among the mountaineers of Kentucky. 
It is a word picture of aspiration, sacrifice and honor. Humor 
and pathos mingle with purpose and adventure in a vivid 
tale of "things as they are" in this primitive Southern com« 
munity. 



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